Goku Battles His Dark Side
by DragonLadyRelena
Summary: (On Hold) The last chapter is up to YOU, the readers. There's a new kid in school, but what secrets does he hide? Can Goku defeat his dark side before it's too late or will evil rule the earth? Rated M for curses, violence, and character death.
1. New Student, Old Enemy

**Disclaimer:** Dragonball Z and all it's characters aren't mine. I'm just having a little fun.

**AN:** All right, folks. I'm leaving the ending of this up to **you**. Yup, you read right. I'm going to write the story until the next to last chapter, then you, the fans, will decide what you want to see happen in the last chapter. Just a quick warning, there will be some of character death in this one.

"Class, we have a new student joining us today," Ms. Peebles called over the noise of thirty eleven year olds. Only one was quiet, San Goten, who was looking out the window, as usual. She didn't know what he was looking for, and he never said, but whatever it was, it must be important at least to him. He glanced over when she spoke, and turned away. She saw him tense then turn his full attention to her and the young boy standing beside her. "He's just transferred to us from another school, so let's be extra nice to him because it's his first day, all right?" She looked down at the boy and smiled. "Would you care to introduce yourself?"

"My name is Jedin," the boy replied in bored tones, sounding as if he'd done this a lot. "It's very nice to meet you all." The polite chorus of greetings from the other students filled the room.

"There's an open seat next to Goten," the teacher went on, making Goten blink in surprise. "Over there, by the window. Goten, do you mind sharing your books with Jedin for today?"

"No, ma'am," he replied, scooting his desk over. "San Goten," he introduced himself, not bothering to hide the curiosity in his eyes.

"Jedin," he answered, leaning over the book to follow the math lesson. Shrugging, Goten did the same, even though it bored him. His mother had homed schooled him for a while, as well as Gohan, but had decided that the regular school experience would be good for him. He didn't think so: he couldn't run as fast or play as hard as he could when he was with Gohan, even Trunks.

Sighing, he turned his attention back to the assignment, knowing recess wasn't far away.

An hour later, Goten stood on the edge of the playground, leaning against a tree. _I didn't think it was possible that I get any more bored today,_ he thought, crossing his arms over his chest. It wasn't that he couldn't play, just that he was tired of having to watch his strength and speed all the time. He looked forward to end of the day, because once he was out of sight from the school, he took to the air, often meeting Trunks for an hour to play or spar with each other before they were both called home for dinner. He knew his mother disapproved of fighting, even if she'd been a warrior herself, but he could no more stop fighting than he could stop breathing. Even for her and as much as he loved her, it wasn't possible.

He was so sunk in his thoughts that he didn't notice Jedin crossing the playground to his side, mirroring his pose against the tree. "Don't feel well, Goten?" he asked, looking up into the swaying branches.

"No," he replied, shrugging one shoulder, "just bored."

"Why's that?" He sounded genuinely interested, bringing his attention to Goten's face.

"I can't say." He shrugged again. "None of this seems all that fun to me."

"Me, either," Jedin confessed, waving to the swings to make his point. "Why swing when you can fly?" Goten tensed, and turned to face him.

"You can fly?"

"Sure, can't you?" he wondered, curiosity and puzzlement in his eyes. "I know not everyone can, but I was sure _you_ could when I walked into the room this morning." Disappointment colored his tone and eyes for a moment. "You're saying that you can't?"

"No, I can," Goten replied quickly, "I just haven't known anyone outside my family that could." Serious brown eyes studied him, suddenly looking older than his eleven years, from under eyebrows a shade or so lighter than his eyes.

"You've got Sayan blood, Goten," Jedin said quietly, startling him with his tone. He was serious, intense, sounding like Piccolo when he was showing him a new technique. "Your mother?"

"My father," he answered, somehow not surprised when Jedin nodded.

"I though so. Both of my parents were Sayans." _How could a couple of Sayans go unnoticed by his family?_ Goten asked himself, not letting the question show in his eyes or on his face.Someone_ would have noticed them_

"Were?"

"They died a few years ago," he told him, shrugging slightly. Goten was stunned: if both of his parents were gone, he'd be devastated. Jedin sounded a lot like Vegeta in that respect: he didn't really care that his parents were gone, or like he barely remembered them and didn't care to, in any case. "I was in foster homes until I was adopted by a human couple three years ago."

"What about your tail?"

"My parents cut it off about a year after I was born, even though I'd lose power, to make me look more human." He looked up into the tree again. "Sometimes I wish they hadn't, but there's nothing I can do about it anyway." He shot Goten a glance he couldn't read. "What about yours?"

"The same." He sighed and pushed a hand through his shock of black hair. "They left my brother's until he was about six, but there was some trouble, and my father cut if off." He looked around and saw the teachers gathering, waiting for the bell. "The bell's going to ring soon."

"Want to walk home with me?" Jedin asked unexpectedly, suddenly sounding like the boy he was. Pushing off the tree, they studied each other, finding something in themselves that called to the other.

"Sure," he answered with a nod, leading the way back to class.

They developed a routine over the next few days, and that helped alleviate the boredom they both suffered. If they met Trunks on the way home, Jedin could either stay or go on alone. If they didn't, they sparred for a while before going their separate ways. Trunks seemed distant whenever Jedin was around, and Goten wasn't sure why. It might have been that he was jealous of Goten going to school and making friends, as his mother home schooled him and he trained with his father almost every day. He didn't want to have to choose between his friends, but something about Jedin seemed to put Trunks on edge.

By unspoken agreement, if they sparred while Jedin was around, they never went Super Sayan. It had been a secret between them and their families for so long that it was habit, but neither of them thought of sharing it with the only other full blooded Sayan on Earth. Trunks never mentioned Jedin to his father, nor did Goten talk about him with Gohan or his mother.

Even when asked, Jedin didn't say more about his past than he had that first day. "I don't know," was one stock answer from him, while another was, "I can't remember." Whether it was true or not, Trunks and Goten never pressed. One thing they knew for sure was that he hadn't seen much of his parents, often left with a nanny for weeks at a time. From what Goten and Trunks had been told, it was unusual for Sayan parents to be involved in even a small way with their children, and frowned upon when they were.

They continued that way for a while, until one day Trunks stopped showing up, never explaining why he didn't come meet Goten anymore. When Goten asked once, he'd mumbled something about training more with his father at home and said nothing more than a hasty farewell before flying home. Confused and visibly upset, he turned to Jedin and asked his opinion. He shrugged and said, "Probably just jealous that you don't spend all your time training like he does." Goten thought about it over the weekend, and wondered if Jedin didn't have a point in there somewhere.

While he missed seeing Trunks every day, he still saw him at the gatherings they had every year. Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays, and the odd informal party held either at Master Roshi's or at The Lookout. There was an awkwardness that had never been there before between them, making both their mothers frown in confusion and ask about when they were home. Neither had an answer for them. Bulma wondered if it was because Trunks was a couple years older than Goten and their mutual interests had changed.

"I'm worried about him, Gohan," ChiChi said quietly, sitting with her eldest son at the kitchen table. Goten was upstairs asleep, blissfully unaware that his brother was there. "He and Trunks have always been friends, but there's a distance between them now." She sighed and sat back in her chair. "When I'm worried about one of my men, there's a reason. I just can't put a finger on this one."

"I could pick him up one day after school," he offered, reaching out to cover her hand with his and give it a squeeze. "I'll ask him, if you like. No offense, Mom, but he might be more willing to talk to me about it than he would you or Bulma." She smiled at him.

"How'd you get so smart, anyway?"

"I learned from the best, Mom," he chuckled, standing to drop a kiss on her cheek. "Don't tell Goten, all right? We'll keep it a surprise." ChiChi nodded and walked him to the door. "Don't worry, Mom. It'll work out," he promised, giving her quick hug before he took off, waving over his shoulder until he was out of sight. With another sigh, she shut and locked the doors and windows, shutting off lights as she made her way to bed. She sent one last worried glance at Goten's door, pausing briefly as she passed, but went on down the hall to her room, closing the door quietly behind her.

"Hey, little brother!" Gohan called, leaning against a tree right outside the school entrance. Goten ran to him and unashamedly threw his arms around him, leaving Jedin scowling behind him.

"What are you doing here?" Goten wanted to know, looking up at his brother. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"I had the day off," he replied, ruffling Goten's hair, "and decided to spend it with you. Ever since I moved out, you and I don't see much of each other. I swear, if it wasn't for holidays and birthdays, I'd completely forget what you look like." Goten laughed. Gohan noticed the scowling boy behind his brother. "Who's your friend?"

"Gohan, this is Jedin," he answered as Jedin joined them. "Jedin, this is my older brother, Gohan." Jedin nodded, but didn't say anything. Something flickered in Gohan's eyes, but it was gone so quickly that Goten didn't get a chance to identify it. "Are you gonna be ok getting home, Jedin?"

"Sure," he said, shrugging one shoulder. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Goten." He looked at Gohan. "Bye."

"See you around," Gohan replied, his voice unexplainable chilly. Something about him was familiar; he just couldn't place it, like he knew him from a dream or a long buried memory. As Jedin walked away, Gohan looked down at Goten. He noticed, not for the first time, how much Goten resembled their father. While he'd looked much the same when he was Goten's age, he'd taken on more of his mother's features as he'd aged, though it barely softened the harsh lines of his Sayan lineage. "When did you meet him?"

"A while ago," Goten told him, bouncing at his side as they wandered away from the school. "He transferred here."

"From where?"

"Don't know," he answered with a shrug. "I never asked, and he's never told me."

"He's a Sayan," Gohan mused, pressing the button for the crosswalk, "or as close to it as I've ever seen outside Dad and Vegeta."

"He's pretty neat. We hang out a lot after school." Goten looked away, his eyes clouding. "Trunks used to hang out with us, but then Vegeta wanted him to train at home more, so he doesn't anymore."

"What does Trunks think of him?"

"I don't think he liked Jedin very much, but I don't know why." Gohan was quiet, turning over what he'd learned from Goten, and his own impressions of Jedin. _There's . . . something about him,_ Gohan thought, keeping one eye on Goten as they walked, _that makes me wonder just whom his parents are, and why he's here. Something's going on here, and I need to get to the bottom of it._

"You have any homework today?" Goten shook his head.

"Where are we going anyway?"

"Does it matter? We're just hanging out today, Goten." Gohan ruffled his hair again, distracting him. "Hungry?"

"You buying?"

"Sure am."

"Let's eat, then!" Gohan let Goten "drag" him to a nearby sidewalk café and made the waiter blink when they ordered two of almost everything on the menu. As they ate, Gohan drew all Goten knew about Jedin out of him, hiding his intentions under the guise of catching up. It wasn't much, but it was enough to start poking around for more information later.

"We need some exercise, Goten," Gohan declared, pushing the last plate away with a deep sigh, "otherwise we'll be as big as _two_ dragons." Leaving a generous tip, he and Goten wandered out past the city limits, making sure there was no one around before they took to the air. Laughing, they raced for the forest to spar and work off the meal, stopping by the house to drop off Goten's satchel and let ChiChi know where they were going. Unknown to both of them, they were watched by a pair of dark brown eyes.

Much later, Goten, exhausted after the long afternoon of sparring with his brother, was asleep while Gohan and ChiChi again sat in the kitchen. He told her everything he'd learned from Goten about Jedin and his own thoughts about him. "I don't know if I like this kid, Mom," he finished, wrapping his around a coffee mug while his mother paced. "There's something about him that bugs me."

"Me, too," she confessed with a sigh, putting her arms around him from behind and resting her cheek on his head. One of Gohan's hands lifted to hers and gave them a squeeze. "I can't tell him not to be friends with him. It's the whole reason I sent him to school, after all." Her arms tightened around Gohan and he shifted to look up at her. "I always knew I wouldn't approve of all of his friends, I just never thought it'd be this soon."

"We couldn't stay kids forever, Mom." She smiled a little sadly.

"I know, sweetie," she answered, her beautiful eyes swimming with tears, "I just thought it would last a little longer, that's all." Looking at him, almost grown up, she wondered where the time had gone. It seemed like just a week ago, he was smaller than Goten, and almost as happy to sit and study, as he was to train with Goku.

"So what do we do?" Gohan wondered, bring her back to the present. She sighed again, gave him one last squeeze before taking a seat.

"I don't know," she replied, ruefully shaking her head. "I just don't know." She chuckled a little. "I used to say Krillin, Yamcha and Piccolo were bad influences on you and Goku. It never stopped you from going off with them whenever you got the chance, and look where it took you all. You saved the world no less than six times."

"I don't think Jedin is the kind of influence you want on Goten, though, Mom," he said, thinking of everything that'd happened in his life, the places he'd been and the friends- enemies, too- he'd made along the way. "The other guys are one thing, but Jedin . . . "

"I know." She looked out the window then back at Gohan. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens."

"If you say so, Mom." Clearly unconvinced, Gohan said nothing more for a while, finishing his coffee. "I'd better get going. I've got to make up for taking today off."

"I'm glad you did. It meant a lot to Goten." She watched as he rose to put his cup in the sink. "To me, too."

"I love you, too, Mom," he said with a smile, giving her a hug and a kiss before he left.

"Be safe, son," she whispered as she watched him fly away. She shivered. Feeling like someone was watching her, she quickly closed and locked the door after she stepped back inside. She turned to see Goten standing in the doorway, rubbing his eyes. "What is it, Goten?"

"Gohan's gone?"

"Yes, dear. Why don't you head back to bed? It's a school night."

"G'night, Mom," he mumbled sleepily and shuffled back up the stairs to collapse on his bed again. Shaking off the feeling, she went through her routine of locking down the house before she went to bed, turning off lights as she went, wondering if she was doing the right thing by sending Goten to school. _Maybe I should home school him again,_ she thought, and got no farther before dropping off to sleep.

**AN:** I guess that's enough for now. For more, please read the next chapter. Right now, I've got a date with a good book and a nap on my couch. Stay frosty, R&R please.


	2. Goten Suspended?

**Disclaimer:** Once again, I don't own it and am making no money off this. I'm just having a lot of fun with the characters.

**AN:** Whew, what a chapter, huh? This one will fill in a little more background on Jedin and others, I think. We'll have to see. Well, on to the story!

Goten and Jedin sat on the hard wooden bench outside the principal's office. Only Jedin managed to look bored with the whole situation. Goten shifted nervously when his mother and Jedin's parents walked out of the principal's office. Looking up at her face, he quickly looked down at his battered boots at the stormy look she sent him. "Let's go, Goten," she said, her words clipped and there was the tone in her voice that told him he was in serious trouble.

"Yes, ma'am," he mumbled, sliding off the bench. Stopping only to sling his bag over his shoulder, he sent Jedin a glance and received a shrug in reply. Keeping his head down, he followed ChiChi out of the school, careful to keep silent until they got home. They were both surprised when they walked in and saw Gohan sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for them. Unfortunately, ChiChi's surprise didn't last long. Goten sat, setting his bag by his chair, when his mother pointed at the table. _Uh-oh,_ Gohan thought, shifting his gaze between his dejected brother and his mother's furious back. _What in the world happened?_ His question was answered when ChiChi turned and fixed her youngest son with a look that would have Vegeta quaking in his boots.

"Suspended!" she shouted, making Goten duck his head and hunch his shoulders even more. "For two _weeks_! Goten, what am I going to do with you? Scuffles on the playground I can understand, but hacking into the school mainframe?" Gohan looked at him in surprise, but wisely kept his mouth shut. "What were you thinking?" Goten also kept his mouth shut, and Gohan thought that if his head dropped any lower, it would be on the table. ChiChi sighed, and rubbed her temple with one hand. "You're going to spend your suspension inside, with your books. I won't have you falling behind just because you're not in class. There's no television or video games for a month. If I have to leave the house for any reason, you're to stick to me like you're glued to my hip, and there won't be any sparring or training for three weeks. Am I understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Goten whispered, picking up his bag and shuffling off to his room to start on the schoolwork his teacher had assigned for his suspension. ChiChi sighed again and dropped into a chair, burying her face in her hands. Gohan stood and got the bottle of aspirin from the cupboard over the sink, shook out three and poured a glass of water. Handing them and the glass to his mother, he stood behind her chair and waited until she took them, downing half the water in one gulp.

"Did he _really_ hack into the school's computers?" Gohan asked quietly, wondering if there was something deeper going on here that no one had noticed yet. ChiChi nodded, resting her head on the back of the chair and closing her eyes.

"I could see Trunks doing something like that," she murmured, "but not Goten."

"Me, either," he agreed, "but Trunks would, only to see if he could do it." They were quiet for a few minutes, each trying to figure out what would make Goten do something like this. "What happened, Mom?"

"Apparently, he and Jedin reset the bells to go off every fifteen minutes," ChiChi answered with a shrug, "instead of every forty-five."

"Jedin was with him?"

"Yes. You'd expect a lot of finger pointing in a situation like this, but they both didn't say anything. It was almost spooky." With her eyes closed, ChiChi didn't see that Gohan had tensed, his eyes firing with barely suppressed anger, but she sensed it. "I want to murder that Jedin, myself," she told him, making him look down at her, "but it wouldn't help the situation just now, Gohan. We'll just have to keep a closer eye on Goten for a while." She opened her eyes and smiled at him. "What brings you here today?"

"Nothing special, really," he replied, shrugging one shoulder. "I just wanted to see you and Goten." He shot a dark glance up the stairs. "I guess my timing couldn't be worse."

"Maybe, but it's good to see you anyway." Sitting up, she rested her elbows on the table and stared out the window. "It's odd, Gohan. There's something strange going on here. I still can't put my finger on it."

"I can't. I've tried." Gohan shrugged and sat down again. "So, what's for dinner?" ChiChi laughed and stood.

"I won't let you starve," she chuckled, ruffling his hair as if he were a child. "It really is good to see you."

A sharp tap on his window snapped Goten awake. He looked over and saw Jedin floating outside his window, his fist raised to tap on the glass again. Out of bed and across the room in one leap, he shoved the window open. "What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice a whisper in case his mother was still awake.

"Are you in trouble?" Jedin kept his voice down as well, trying to look everywhere at once.

"Yeah. I'm grounded for two weeks, and stuck with my mom wherever she goes. I can't train, spar, play video games or watch television. I'm stuck with books and chores until I go back to school."

"That's rough."

"What about you? Did you get in trouble with your parents?"

"Not really," Jedin answered with a shrug. "They think I'm in bed asleep."

"Why aren't you in bed?" Goten asked, yawning.

"Human punishments don't mean much to me."

"It's late, Jedin" Goten pointed out, looking over his shoulder at the clock on the wall. "Almost three in the morning."

"Exactly! It's the perfect time to sneak out." He grinned, a mischievous light in his eyes. "Come with me, Goten."

"Where?"

"Who cares?"

"I can't, Jedin."

"Why not?"

"My brother's here. He'll sense it the minute I fly away."

"He won't, no one's that good. Come on, Goten. Let's have some fun."

"I've had all the fun I can take for one day, Jedin. I'm sorry, but I'm not going."

"If that's how you feel about it, Goten, I can't make you."

"I'm in enough trouble as it is. If I leave with you, I'll be in even _more_ trouble."

"Just a few minutes, Goten, that's all I'm asking," Jedin pleaded, oddly looking like he was going to cry. Torn, Goten looked up at the stars. He wanted to go. Even just five minutes outside would make the next two weeks more bearable, but if he got caught, he'd be older than Master Roshi before he was allowed out of his room again. Hacking into the school computers had been fun, but that was before they'd gotten caught. The punishment he'd received made him think twice about going out with Jedin.

"Maybe next time, Jedin," he replied, stepping back to close the window.

"If you won't come out," Jedin said, "I'll come in."

"Jedin, no," he protested, but it was too late. Jedin was inside and sitting on his bed before he could stop him. "What if my mom comes in?"

"She won't," Jedin assured him absently, waving a hand in dismissal. "Stop being such a baby. Some day, huh?"

"I guess so," Goten answered with a shrug, sitting at his desk. "I'm not going to do anything that stupid again."

"Why do you let her boss you around like that?" Jedin wondered, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "You could get around her so easily."

"Not really," he chuckled, shaking his head. "Mom knows, sometimes before I do, that I'm going to be in trouble." He sighed. "Not only that, she's my mother. As the saying goes, she brought me into this world, and she can take me out just as easily."

"She's just a human, Goten. They're not that strong."

"Maybe not compared to Sayans, Jedin, but there's a lot of good points to being human."

"I don't think so. I've never seen that much good about them."

"Maybe you're just not looking hard enough, or in the right places."

"I could care less about humans, Goten." The both turned at a light step in the hallway.

"Go, Jedin," Goten pleaded, listen to the footsteps come closer to his door. "It's Gohan."

"From what I've seen, he's not so tough," Jedin sneered with all the confidence of a child that he was invincible.

"He's more powerful than he looks, Jedin." He dropped his voice to a fierce whisper. "Go, Jedin!" For a moment, Jedin looked like he wanted Gohan to find him there, but only for a moment. He was off the bed and out the window in the same movement, leaving Goten gaping at him.

"See ya, Goten," he called quietly, and was gone. Giving himself a mental shake, Goten dove into bed and under the covers just as Gohan opened the door.

"Goten?" Gohan asked, poking his head inside. "Is everything all right?"

"Gohan?" he replied sleepily, turning to the door and rubbing his eyes. "What is it?"

"I thought I heard voices," Gohan told him, stepping in the room and looking around. "It's cold in here, Goten!"

"Must have left the window open earlier," he mumbled, turning his face into the pillow. "Could you close it?"

"Sure," Gohan replied, sending a questioning look at his brother as he walked over to close the window. "Are you sure everything's all right?"

"Just fine, Gohan," he answered, opening one eye to see Gohan standing next to the bed, looking down at him in confusion. "It's late, and I've got a lot of schoolwork to do tomorrow. Chores, too."

"All right, Goten," Gohan said with a sigh. "I'm sorry I woke you. Good night, Goten."

"G'night, Gohan," Goten murmured, and closed his eyes, asleep again moments later. Gohan smiled at him, making sure the blankets were tucked close before he left the room, the door closing quietly behind him.

Goten didn't see Jedin again until they were both back at school. Before he left, ChiChi had told him that Gohan was going to pick up from school every day for the next week to make sure he came straight home. It wouldn't have done any good to argue, knowing he could promise he'd come home right after school until he was blue in the face, but it honestly wouldn't have changed a thing. _Just great,_ Goten fumed as he wrote down the homework assignment for the day. _Just what I need, my brother picking me up from school like I'm in kindergarten._ Jedin noticed his bad mood, but didn't say anything about it until recess.

"What's the matter, Goten?" he asked as they leaned against their favorite tree, an elm with spreading branches that offered perfect shade from the sun.

"My brother's picking me up from school today," he grumbled, shoving both hands through his hair, "and every day this week, just to make sure I go straight home."

"It's only for a week, Goten," Jedin pointed out philosophically, shrugging one shoulder.

"It's embarrassing, Jedin!" he protested, remembering at the last moment to keep his voice down. "Having my brother pick me up from school like I'm a baby or something."

"Let it go for now, my friend," Jedin advised, looking around to be sure they weren't overheard. "It's only for a week, then everything will be back to normal." Goten looked at him in amazement. "What?"

"I've never heard you talk like that, Jedin. You surprised me, that's all."

"Sometimes, there's nothing you can do about a problem, Goten, except work with it until it gives you the chance to fix it." He pushed off the tree as the bell sounded, leaving Goten still staring at him in open astonishment for almost a full minute before he came back to himself and followed him back to class.

As promised, Gohan was waiting for him when school was over, and would be a temporary fixture against the tree. "How was the first day back?" Gohan asked as they flew home, slow enough so they could talk, but still fast enough to get them home before ChiChi came after them.

"All right," Goten replied, shrugging one shoulder. "Are you sure you can't talk Mom into letting me fly home by myself?"

"Hey, you're still grounded, little brother," Gohan said with a shrug of his own, "and besides, I want to live. If I ask Mom to let you off early, she'll probably ground me, too, then starve me to death."

"Which probably wouldn't take more than a day or two," Goten answered, smiling, "especially the way _you_ eat."

"You eat exactly the same way, Goten, always have and probably always will." He didn't like having to escort Goten home as much as Goten didn't like having his brother pick him up. ChiChi, on the other hand, had decreed it, and they would both have to deal with it. _It's only for a week,_ Gohan told himself, stifling a sigh. Once Goten was inside, he waved to his mother and took off again, heading for work.

"Upstairs, young man," ChiChi said, her eyes and tone frosty as she pointed to the stairs. "You've got homework, then we're going to the market."

"Yes, Mom," he replied, almost flying up the stairs to get started on his homework. The sooner he finished, the sooner they could leave, and he'd spend less time glued to her hip. Of course, once they got back, he'd be doing chores that would probably last until sundown. How his mother managed to fill his day with useless chores, he didn't know and didn't risk asking in case she decided to pile more on.

He sighed, digging his math book out of his bag, and got to work.

Goten and Jedin got in more trouble over the years, some they got caught for, and more that they didn't. ChiChi and Gohan watched, helpless, as Goten grew more and more distant from them, unable to penetrate the wall he'd erected around himself. He rarely went to the family gatherings anymore, and always either left early or stood alone the whole time when he did, not saying anything to anyone. Even Vegeta and Piccolo said more than he did, and that in itself was a rare thing.

He started wearing dark colors or unrelieved black, looking more like a street punk than a half-Sayan warrior. Vegeta said, more than once, that he just needed some sense beaten into him and he'd be the one to do it, but both ChiChi and Bulma had intervened, objecting that it was just a phase and he'd grow out of it. Gohan didn't think so, and made a point of cornering Vegeta at one party and asking him about Jedin's family.

"I'll look into it," Vegeta told him, seeing the undisguised worry in Gohan's eyes and not even bothering to sneer at it as he usually did, "and let you know what I find out."

"Thanks, Vegeta," he replied, slumping against a wall in relief. "I appreciate it."

"I'm not looking for gratitude, boy," Vegeta snapped, clenching his fists in annoyance. "I want to know about this . . . Jedin character as much as you do. If his parents were Sayans, I want to know how we missed sensing them, especially your idiot father." Gohan sighed, and straightened, looking past Vegeta to where his brother stood alone, staring off into space. Vegeta turned and stared at Goten as well. "I don't know what's gotten into that brother of yours, Gohan, but I'll find out."

That was the best he'd get out of Vegeta, and Gohan knew it, so he left him alone, going back to ChiChi. He wrapped an arm around her and she turned into his shoulder, burying her face in his neck. "We'll figure everything out, Mom," he told her, not knowing if it was true, but he knew she needed the words as much as she needed to lean on his strength for a moment. "It'll work out."

To Be Continued . . .


	3. Eviction Notice

**Disclaimer:** Yet again, I don't own it. My friend and I own Jedin and will guard him zealously. He's ours, and we won't share . . . at least without permission.

**AN:** Watch this chapter! It's a doozy!

"Are you sure about this?" Goten, now seventeen, asked, a little nervous as they stood outside Jackson's Tattoos and Piercings. It was summer, the afternoon bright with no clouds to be seen in the sky. Restless and more than a little bored, they'd decided to wander the city until they found something interesting to do. "I don't think we're old enough."

"Will you let that go?" Jedin demanded, looking back over his shoulder at him in exasperation. "If it makes you feel better, I'll get one, too."

"Jedin, I just don't think this is a good idea, that's all," he replied, shrugging one shoulder. "It seems a little stupid to me."

"Let's look inside," Jedin suggested, "and if you don't want to, we'll go." Goten lifted an eyebrow at that, but sighed and followed Jedin inside. The smells of ink, sweat and antiseptic stung his nose, but his eyes were drawn to one wall where pictures and sketches of tattoos were displayed. Some were tacked up, while others were in frames. Mythical creatures, women in various stages of dress, flaming skulls, insects, and avenging angels were all lined up for him to see, making his head spin with possibilities. He looked over to see Jedin poring over an album full of even more pictures and sketches, his fingers stuck between pages as if he was having trouble deciding which one he wanted the most.

A curtain separated the front from the back, and the buzzing of tattoo guns made Goten think of a hive of bees. It twitched and Goten looked over. "See anythin' you like?" asked a man who reminded Goten of his grandfather, the Ox King. Easily topping seven feet, he had the same bulky build but instead of black hair, he had red hair, blond streaks coming back like wings from his temples. He had few tattoos, but the ones he had were impressive. The dragon on his right arm looked like Shenlong, wrapping around it from his shoulder to his wrist, the head of the dragon over his shoulder and disappearing beneath his shirt.

"Just looking around for now," he answered, shaking his head.

"Let me know if you need anythin'," the man replied, lumbering away.

"Hey, Goten," Jedin called without looking up. "You've gotta come see this." Goten wandered over to look over his friend's shoulder at the picture of a fire-breathing dragon, a luscious blond clutched in his claws.

"No, not that one," he said, shaking his head at all of Jedin's picks, from the absurd and back again. "Hang on, Jedin. I've got an idea." The man who'd spoken to Goten had wandered back in, looking at them with interest. "Have you got a piece of paper and a pencil?"

"Sure." The man reached under the counter, dug around for a moment, before handing him the items he requested. After directing Jedin to stand against a wall, arms crossed over his chest, Goten set the pencil to the paper. Within a few minutes, he had a sketch of he and Jedin back to back, looking toward the viewer, their poses mirror images of each other, and the same annoyed expressions on their faces.

Studying it a moment, he shook his head and made a few quick adjustments before he nodded. "How about that?" he asked Jedin, setting it on the counter.

"I like it," he said, amazed at his friend's talent. They looked ready to jump off the page, even though it had taken less than ten minutes to produce. Goten had dressed them in Sayan battle armor, hair sticking straight up, like the pictures of Vegeta he'd seen during a visit to Goten's while his mother was out shopping. "It needs a little something, though."

"What's that?" Jedin whispered in his ear, pointing to the alphabets on the wall. "Oh, that's good," he chuckled, picking up the pencil again. Getting the general lines of the script, he drew in "Sayan Pride Forever" above and under the two of them. "Can your guys do that?"

"Shouldn't be too hard to find someone," the man replied, taking the sketch and disappearing into the back with it. The two stood, looking idly around the lobby until the man came back. "Tank says he can do it. He's the best I've got. Hey, Tank!"

"What?"

"Come on out here for a sec." Tank shoved the curtain out of his way, and Goten thought immediately of an older, more muscular version of Gohan. Instead of standing straight up, Tank let his hair hang down his back and into his ice blue eyes. Tattoos covered his arms and bare chest, and from Goten could see, he had most of the ones from the wall on his body.

"How's it goin', guys?" he asked, his voice raspy from too many cigarettes. "So which one of you drew this?" He held up the sketch almost accusingly.

"He did," Jedin said, jerking a thumb at Goten. Tank studied him for a moment before he smiled, revealing two gold teeth.

"It's good," he told him, studying the picture again. "Fantastic, really. Can I keep this when we're done? I'd like to put it on the wall."

"Uh, sure, go ahead," Goten replied, stunned almost speechless that a sketch he'd just tossed off would be seen by so many people coming in and out of the parlor.

"You two ready?" They nodded and followed Tank through the curtain. Goten saw that the tattoos covered his whole back as well, disappearing below the waistband of his cut off jeans. He pointed them to a couple of chairs. "First tattoos, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Don't worry, it doesn't hurt that much." Goten leaned over and said something to Tank that Jedin didn't catch. Though he sent him a questioning look, Goten just smiled and leaned back in his chair again. "I can do that, kid. No problem."

"I swear, Jedin, I'd rather get an energy blast to the face than go through that again," Goten murmured as they left the tattoo parlor four hours later, proud but sore owners of tattoos. "Doesn't hurt that much, my ass."

"_I_ can't believe Tank offered you a job," Jedin replied, trying to take his own mind off how much his left arm hurt.

"I never thought a useless hobby like that would get me a job," Goten answered with a shrug, wincing at the spasm of pain that shot down his right arm.

"Tank _did_ warn us that it would take about a week for the soreness to go away."

"It's not next week yet?" Jedin laughed, before he stopped to look at Goten. "What is it?"

"Are you going to take it? The job, I mean." Goten shrugged his left shoulder.

"I don't know," he said, resisting the urge to rub his arm. "I might. Why?"

"I was just wondering, that's all." Jedin looked away for a moment. "Why'd you ask Tank to do that?"

"This is going to sound lame," Goten admitted with a slight blush, "but so we'd always be together." Jedin chuckled a bit and shook his head.

"It's not lame to me, Goten." They started walking again, waiting until they were well out of the city before they took off. "Goten, you're my brother, in everything except blood, and we both know that it doesn't always count."

"You're right, sometimes it doesn't," he agreed, nodding.

"Now, everyone will know we're brothers, Goten." He gave Goten a look that often meant trouble. "Where to now?"

"How about we go on a tour of the old battlefields?" Goten suggested, knowing it was the best way to stay out of trouble for now. He was going to hear it when he got home, and he knew it. _Why not have as much fun as I can for now before all I see are the walls of my room?_

"This was where Gohan beat Cell," Goten told Jedin as they stood looking around the battlefield. They'd already been to where Baby Buu had emerged from his pod, where Trunks from the future had destroyed Frieza and King Kold, where Vegeta and Nappa had attacked Earth, and even where Raditz had held Gohan captive in his Sayan pod before being destroyed by Piccolo and Goku.

"I thought Hercule defeated Cell." Goten shook his head and laughed until his sides ached.

"From what I was told, Gohan and the others let Hercule take the credit because they wanted to keep a low profile. Even though there was a camera crew with Hercule, the camera was knocked out, so it would have been their word against the local hero." He shrugged. "Everyone was happy, so who cared?" Jedin chuckled and pushed a hand through his hair.

"Where to next, Goten?"

"There's only one more, on this planet anyway," he answered, taking to the sky with Jedin close behind. "The rest are in various places throughout the galaxy."

"Is that it?" Jedin asked almost an hour later, pointing down to large clearing with only an enormous stump in the middle of it. Grass didn't grow around it and hadn't since before Goten had been born.

"That's it," he said, landing on the edge of the clearing. "The Tree of Might grew here, a long time ago. Gohan had just turned four or five when a Sayan, Turles, and his gang landed and planted the seed, wanting the fruit that made the one who ate it invincible." He didn't notice that Jedin had stiffened, his hands clenched at his sides, as he continued the story of how King Kai had contacted Goku and told him what was going on, that the Tree of Might would consume all the lives, energy and resources on the planet to bear the fruit.

"Hang on, Goten," Jedin interrupted, holding up a hand. Goten looked over at him, noticing for the first time that his friend's power level was rising quickly, fast approaching Super Sayan, nervous that his friend might be losing control.

"What is it, Jedin?"

"Turles was my father."

"What!"

"No one knew it, but my mother followed my father here, already pregnant with me," he said, seeing the tree as it had been, rising more than two hundred feet above the forest, spreading branches that blocked out the sun. "After he died, she told me stories about him and made me believe he was killed on a far away planet, not here."

"Jedin, power down," Goten warned, knowing his brother and Vegeta would sense his rising power level and come flying as fast as they could.

"Your father killed mine, Goten," Jedin growled, spinning around to glare at him. "I have every right to be angry."

"I know, Jedin, but we'll have a fight on our hands if you don't power down." He worked at keeping his voice as calm as possible, even though his nerves were jumping. He'd never seen Jedin this mad before, and never wanted to again. "Jedin--"

"Goten, shut up!" He threw a punch so hard and fast that if he hadn't blocked it at the last moment, it would probably have taken Goten's head off.

"Jedin, please stop this," Goten tried again, knowing he had to settle him down and quickly. He barely dodged a kick aimed at his head, quickly blocking the return punch.

"I said, SHUT UP!" Jedin attacked again, and Goten made no move except for self-defense. The attacks got faster and stronger as the fight went on, making him wonder if he'd have to go Super Sayan to stop the fight. Sensing his distraction, Jedin landed a hard roundhouse kick to Goten's chest, sending him flying into a nearby tree. Both Goten and the tree crashed to the ground, with Jedin close behind to keep fighting. Looking up from the ground to see his friend bearing down on him, fit to kill, Goten shot to his feet and into the air again.

"The hell with this," he muttered, and transformed into a Super Sayan even though it was now pretty much guaranteed that at least Gohan and Vegeta would be showing up soon. He had to stop Jedin while he had a chance. "Sorry about this, Jedin," he said when Jedin stopped in surprise.

"So _that's_ how you do it," Jedin murmured, shocking Goten when he did the same.

"Power down, Jedin," Goten said, "before Gohan and Vegeta show up. If they do, we'll both be in more trouble than we ever want to be in." Like the day they'd gotten in trouble for hacking into the school computers, Jedin looked ready to take on both Vegeta and Gohan single-handedly. Goten couldn't allow that, because while Gohan might not kill him, Vegeta would. "Please, Jedin. We'll finish this later, but we need to get out of here."

"Very well," Jedin replied with a sigh, and powered down as Goten requested. Goten did the same, the tension leaving him in a rush. "I'm sorry, Goten."

"It's not your fault," he denied, shaking his head a little. "I'd react the same way, I think."

"We should probably get out of here."

"You're right," Goten said with a slight chuckle. "Not only that, it's time for dinner. A fight like that really works up my appetite."

"See ya tomorrow, Goten," Jedin called, quickly flying out of sight, his power level still high, but not as high as it had been even moments before. Goten followed Jedin's example and flew as fast as he could for home. When he got there, ChiChi was standing outside, her arms crossed over her chest and looking like she was ready to ground him again.

"Where have you been?"

"Out." He shrugged, ignoring the twinge in his ribs from the kick Jedin had given him and the pull in his arm from the tattoo. "I left you a note."

"You said you were going out and would be back later."

"I didn't want you to worry, Mom."

"I worry about you all the time, Goten," she shot back, "especially when I _know_ you're out and about with that Jedin character."

"There's nothing wrong with Jedin."

"How come I've never met him? You've been friends with him for six years, Goten, and I've never met him once. The only times I saw him were when you two were in trouble together."

"Mom--"

"Ever since you met him," she went on as if he hadn't spoken, "you've been getting in trouble in one form or another. Fights, hacking, stealing, vandalism . . . the list goes on, Goten. You and Trunks rarely, if ever, speak anymore and you two were practically attached at the hip when you were younger."

"Times change, Mom," he replied casually, barely feeling the twinge from his conscience about the fact that he and Trunks had grown apart over the last six years. He knew Trunks, once his friend, brother, idol and rival, shared some of the blame of the distance between them. Every attempt to reestablish the camaraderie between them Goten had made had been rebuffed. As long as he was a friend to Jedin, Trunks wanted nothing to do with him. It had hurt at first, and while he occasionally missed his first friend, he had been forced to put childish thoughts of them fighting together to save the universe behind him.

"You've changed the most, Goten," ChiChi murmured, looking up at him now with anguished eyes. Her sweet, stubborn little boy had been replaced with a stranger with seemingly mercurial moods, at home nowhere and with no one, except Jedin. He flew off at the least opportunity, staying out for longer periods and saying little if anything of where he'd been.

Blinking back tears, she studied him again, noticing for the first time that he was covered in dirt and grass stains, his clothes ripped in several places. "What happened, Goten?" she asked breathlessly, panic making her heart pound for a moment before she controlled it. "Come inside."

"I'm all right, Mom," he said, noticing for the first time that places other than his ribs and arm ached from his impact with the tree. Aside from those aches, he felt fine, but knew his mother would have to fuss over him for a while until she satisfied herself that he was unhurt, just sore. He let her pull him inside and push him into a chair at the table, leaving the room to get her fully stocked first aid kit. Resting his elbow on the table, he propped his chin on his hand and closed his eyes, visions of the fight flickering through his mind. With formal training, Jedin could be one of the best fighters on the planet.

He was so intent on his thoughts that he didn't notice ChiChi's return or the fact that she'd ripped the remains of his right sleeve to the shoulder. "Goten, when did you get this?" she demanded, staring at the tattoo.

"Hmm?" he murmured distractedly, looking blankly at the tattoo before her question sank in. "This afternoon."

"When did you decide to do this?"

"This morning." She sighed, the one that Goten knew always warned of a tongue-lashing. Suddenly, he was tired of being treated like he was still an eleven year old, and stood to face his mother.

"I won't have this, Goten," she said, glaring up at him. "I will _not_ have you getting yourself tattooed and pierced--"

"I didn't get a piercing," he broke in, one eyebrow lifting insolently, "but now that you mention it, an eyebrow ring would look really cool on me."

"Don't you dare, Goten!" The look in her eyes used to freeze him on the spot when he was younger, but not anymore. "I refuse to allow this! I am still your mother, and as long as you live under my roof, you will follow my rules."

"Is that right?" he asked, tilting his head to one side as he studied her. She nodded, not seeing that his hands fisted and relaxed in a visible fight for control. "Fine. Screw you, Mom. I'm moving out." He started for the back door, hardly surprised when it opened before he got there. Gohan stepped through, leaving the door open behind him.

"Goten, did you--"

"Yes," he replied, hardly looking at his brother as he passed. He slammed the door behind him, ripping it off its hinges in his anger.

"Goten!" Gohan called, quickly understanding the situation. Goten ignored him, launching himself skyward. He didn't know where he was going, and realized that he didn't care. A surge of power had him turning toward the city, where Jedin and his adoptive parents lived.

To Be Continued . . .


	4. Lies and Betrayals

**Disclaimer:** Do I really have to type this again? I don't own it! My buddy and I **do** own Jedin, and we're not sharing! Ask nicely, and we might consider it.

**AN: **Well, that last chapter was fun. This chapter's is going to kick ass!

Jedin landed outside his adoptive parent's house, still angry about the fact that his mother had lied to him about his father. She'd led him to believe that his father had died on a far away planet, but he'd been defeated _here_, by the father of his best friend. Taking a deep breath that didn't calm him down at all, he opened the door and stepped inside to see his parents sitting on the sofa, waiting.

"Where have you been?" his mother, Erica, demanded, getting to her feet. After his latest growth spurt, she barely reached his chin, but it didn't stop her from glaring up at him. He'd never felt intimidated by that look, but he'd let her believe he was. Now, he didn't bother, instead looking as bored and insolent as he could.

"None of your business," he replied, about to step around her and go up to his room when his father, Temin, stood as well.

"What happened to your clothes?" he asked, one eyebrow lifting as he looked his adopted son up and down. His clothes were ripped, barely hanging on by threads in several places.

"I was sparring, that's all."

"Fighting again, Jedin?" Erica groaned, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Didn't we teach you better than that?"

"You _tried_," he informed her contemptuously, "but _I_ wasn't listening, or even _remotely_ interested in hearing it." He whistled through his teeth. "In one ear and out the other."

"Don't talk to your mother like that!"

"She's _not_ my mother, any more than _you're_ my father."

"We adopted you, Jedin," Erica said, her eyes filling. "That made you ours, by law if not by blood."

"Your laws, not mine," he shot back, feeling his power level rise dangerously high again. "They have no power over me."

"You're as bound to them as we are, Jedin," Temin said, wrapping an arm around his wife's shoulders comfortingly. She turned into his shoulder, burying her face in his neck. "We raised you, cared for you since you came to us--"

"You offered me a convenient place to stay," Jedin broke in, shrugging one shoulder, "and way out of the system, that's all."

"We worry about you, Jedin!"

"You think I _want_ your useless human emotions?" He scoffed. "They mean less than nothing to me. They never have and never will."

"Is that all we were, Jedin?" Erica asked, lifting her head. "An escape?"

"And a distraction," he agreed with a nod. "It was fun, if easy, to get around your rather . . . pathetic attempts to 'bring me around', I believe was the way you put it."

"We set boundaries, made rules, because we love you, and you spent more time with Goten and your little . . . hoodlum friends than with us."

"Don't bring Goten into this. You don't know him."

"We know that you two are _still_ getting into trouble together! It's been that way since you met him."

"Your point?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow at them.

"That tattoo, for one."

"Oh, is that all? For your information, it was _my_ idea, not his. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Everything! You've been getting into trouble ever since you met Goten, and--"

"I've been getting into trouble _long_ before I met Goten. You just didn't know about it." He sighed and shook his head. "This conversation is over. We're just going around in circles." He turned away to go upstairs, but Temin put a hand on his arm to stop him. Jedin froze.

"We're not finished."

"Yes, we are," he said, his tone flat. "Take your hands off me."

"Or what?"

"This," he said, focusing his anger in one hand. He spun and sent an energy blast through Temin, knocking him back into Erica and then both of them went through a wall.

"Why, Jedin?" Erica asked, gasping for breath.

"Fun, mostly," he answered with a shrug. Erica closed her eyes and was still. Chuckling, he looked up at the ceiling. Tilting his head a little to one side, he shook his head and blew a hole through the roof, flying through it. He looked down at the sleeping and an evil smile touched his mouth. "Time for a wake up call!"

Buildings and homes all disappeared or went up in flames under his assault. After a time, he felt a Sayan approaching and he knew it wasn't Goten. Landing near his home, he stretched out on the ground and used a small energy blast to knock a wall down on himself. One more blast brought a tree down nearby, across the wall, pinning him in place. Satisfied, he waited for his friend to arrive.

Vegeta hovered over the ruined buildings, unseen by civilians, firefighters, police, and EMTs alike as they swarmed over the wreckage like ants, looking for survivors. Some of the buildings were still smoldering, debris still falling in others. Half the city had been destroyed, the damage heaviest around one neighborhood. Screams of the trapped, injured and dying barely reached him, as high up as he was, but he could still hear them, and smell the smoke and blood.

The power level he'd sensed before had surfaced again here in the city, then vanished again just before he'd gotten there to see the chaos that reigned below him. Goten's energy had been nearby the unknown one earlier in the day, making Vegeta wonder if the boy's friend, Jedin, had finally reached Super Sayan. It made sense to him, but he wanted to be sure that it had been Jedin who destroyed the city below, or if there was a new enemy they had to face.

A quick flicker had him looking around. Goten was coming toward him, fast. Though his Sayan pride suffered a little, he hid behind a sign, keeping his own power level as low as he could. He would wait and see where the kid went and what his friend had to say about this.

"Oh, no," Goten whispered, taking in the devastation below him. "This can't be." He landed near where Jedin's house used to be, calling for his friend. _Let him be all right,_ he thought frantically over and over. Please_ let him be all right._

He went through the entire house in his search, finding Jedin's parents, both dead, but no sign of his friend. _Maybe he wasn't home yet,_ he prayed, widening his search. His stomach sank when he found his friend almost completely buried beneath the wall of a neighbor's house almost a block away, soot and blood smearing his face. "Jedin!" he cried, his panic and worry giving him the strength to shove the tree off the wall. "Can you hear me?"

"Goten, help me!" Jedin called back, his voice hoarse from smoke. "I'm trapped!"

"Are you all right?" Goten asked, kneeling in the burned out grass to get a better look. "Is anything broken?"

"Not as far as I know," he replied with a small shake of his head. "I can't move. My legs are stuck."

"Hang on, Jedin. I'll get you out of there."

"Hurry, Goten." He closed his eyes and shifted under the wall with a wince. "I can barely feel them."

"Stay with me," Goten urged as he got a good grip on the wall. "When I say go, can you crawl out from under there?"

"Yeah."

"Ready?"

"Ready."

"Go!" Groaning with effort, Goten lifted the wall just enough for Jedin to crawl out from under it before letting it go and dropping to his knees beside his friend. "Are you _sure_ you're all right?"

"I'll be all right, Goten," Jedin panted, stretching out on his back, his right arm cradled to his chest and closed his eyes. "I just need to rest for a bit."

"What happened?"

"I don't know. I stopped to get something to eat, calm down a little, before going home, and was almost there when it seemed like the city exploded." His eyes flew open and he looked pleadingly up at Goten. "My parents, Goten. Are they--"

"I'm sorry, Jedin," he answered with a shake of his head. "They didn't make it."

"You're certain?"

"Yes." Goten looked away down the street. "Half of the city is gone, Jedin. It's almost like it wasn't ever here."

"Help me up," Jedin said, holding his uninjured arm out to him. "We should go."

"Go where, though?" Goten asked, getting to his feet and pulling Jedin to his. "Your home is gone, and I moved out of mine."

"You did? When?"

"About half an hour ago," Goten admitted sheepishly, chuckling a little. "Can you stand?"

"Yeah, I'm all right."

"Jedin, did you see anyone before it happened?"

"Huh?"

"Did you see anyone?" Goten repeated, looking around once more at the ruined city. It was quiet again . . . _too_ quiet. Something wasn't right here, and he knew he had to get to the bottom of it before something else happened.

"Not that I remember," Jedin replied, shaking his head. "I didn't see much of anything except the wall coming down on me. After that, it was the burned lawn and that tree until you showed up."

"I thought not."

"Is it important?"

"Could be," Goten muttered, sensing someone nearby. It felt like . . . "Vegeta's here."

"Where?"

"I can't tell," he answered, turning in a slow circle. "He's here somewhere, though. He'll show himself soon."

"Huh?"

"Just wait."

"Goten!" Vegeta shouted, flying into view as predicted. "Get away from him!"

"Why?" he called back, looking up at him in confusion.

"Look around, Goten! _He's_ the one who did this!" Vegeta landed but didn't get any closer to the pair. "Jedin blew up the city!"

"No," Jedin answered, shaking his head. "I wasn't even home."

"I _felt_ it, you little shit," he shot back, crossing his arms and glaring at him. "You can't hide power like that from a _true_ Sayan."

"That's enough, Vegeta."

"What was that, _boy_?"

"I said," Goten replied, enunciating each word clearly, his power level rising with each word, "that is _enough!_" Afterward, all Vegeta could remember thinking was, Damn,_ that kid's fast!_ Goten moved faster than even he could follow and sent him flying with a perfect uppercut.

"Nice shot," Jedin muttered behind him as Vegeta stopped his flight and glared down at Goten.

"Why you--" He shook his head and rubbed his jaw a little. "You'll pay for that! Kakarot's son or not, you'll answer for that."

"Watch what you say about my friend, then, Vegeta," Goten replied, his look in his eyes colder than winter in the HFIL. "Can you prove that _you_ didn't do this?"

"What?"

"What proof do I have that it _was_ Jedin and _not_ you?" he demanded, shrugging Jedin's restraining hand off his shoulder with a violent jerk of his shoulders. "How do I _know_ that it was my best friend and not you?"

"I can offer nothing more than my word, Goten," Vegeta replied, his anger subsiding a little at the desperate expression that had taken its place in Goten's eyes. He looked ready to break, and the Sayan Prince couldn't- had never- fought a foe at any less than their best. Kakarot was another story altogether, but for his sons, it was different.

"And we _all_ know how well you keep it," Jedin muttered, crossing his arms and glaring up at Vegeta. He winced at the pain that shot up his arm from his wrist. _I probably sprained it at the very least,_ he thought, mentally shrugging, _and it's probably broken at the worst._ It didn't matter to him one way or the other: it would heal quickly, the same as many of the other wounds he'd received over the last six years of sparring with Goten.

"Silence, boy," Vegeta returned, turning the full force of his glare on Jedin. "You're not completely off the hook, yet." Jedin shot the look back at him, full of defiance and undisguised loathing. "Keep looking at me like that, and you won't be able to count all the broken bones."

"Keep talking like that, Vegeta," Goten warned, "and they'll be putting what's left of you back together in Otherworld."

"Think you can do it?"

"I'll give it my best shot," he answered, taking his stance: relaxed, on the balls of his feet, ready for anything Vegeta could throw at him. Vegeta studied him, realizing, and not for the first time, how much he looked like Kakarot: the same stance, the same determined gleam in his eyes and the half smile that always gave Vegeta the urge to punch it off his face. It had only worked a couple of times, but that didn't stop him from trying, of course. Truth be told, he actually liked and respected Kakarot, but couldn't destroy his image or lose his pride by saying so.

"Well, you can certainly _try,_ Goten," Vegeta said, shrugging a little, "but you'll have a hard time _succeeding_." Anger flared briefly in Goten's eyes again, but before he could do more than crouch to launch himself into the sky and to Vegeta, Jedin was already gone. Fists, feet, knees and elbows flew as Jedin attacked him, neither of them actually landing a blow on the other. At one point, Vegeta disappeared as Jedin threw a punch, reappearing behind him, catching him in an unshakable grip before Goten could warn his friend. "You've still got a _lot_ to learn, kid."

"Not as much as you think!" Jedin replied, breaking free and attacking with renewed vigor. Below, Goten watched, knowing he should stop this, but he also knew that having one's ass handed to them on a platter was a necessary- if humbling- experience for a fighter. From the look of things, Jedin was going to have his hands full with Vegeta. Vegeta was playing with him, letting him come close, before driving him back. He was letting him exhaust himself, upset himself, and create holes in his defenses that he could exploit. _It's working,_ Goten thought, not looking away from the fight, waiting for Vegeta to take advantage of the situation he'd created.

It didn't take long. Keeping his eyes on the battle raging above, he saw Vegeta land a two handed blow that knocked Jedin to the ground and sent him skidding over a hundred feet before he came to a hard stop against a tree, the tree falling over from the force. He winced in sympathy, but still made no move to help Jedin just yet. "Like I said," Vegeta told him, panting a little, "you've still got a lot to learn, Jedin."

"I hate repeating myself," Jedin answered, getting slowly, painfully to his feet. He shook his head to clear it, his wrist throbbing. "Shall we continue?"

"Can you get back up here?" Vegeta asked with a negligent shrug, as if it didn't matter to him one way or the other, but Goten could tell that he would come down and finish the fight if Jedin didn't- or couldn't- join him in the air. "If not, then the fight is mine." Jedin growled and was up in the air again so fast that Vegeta blinked. His infinitesimal hesitation was enough for Jedin to land a punch to Vegeta's stomach that had the air rushing out of him. Jedin drew his arm back, then twisted his body and delivered a powerful blow with his knee in the middle of Vegeta's back that sent him to the ground.

"Ouch, that had to hurt," Goten murmured, impressed by the crater Vegeta had created when he'd landed. It was easily twenty feet around, and at least half that deep. He turned his gaze back to Jedin, who rested his hands on his knees, panting hard. "You've pissed him off now, Jedin!" he called up to his friend, who grinned.

"How long do you think he'll stay down?"

"Not long," Goten replied, shrugging a little. "He'll be after your head now."

"Like he wasn't before?" Jedin chuckled, a little evilly. "This'll be fun."

"Only you, Jedin," Goten laughed, shaking his head. Vegeta stirred, grunting in pain as he pushed himself to his knees before getting to his feet. Blood ran freely from a cut on his cheek, dripping off his jaw while another dripped blood off his hand from a cut on his bicep. Goten's eyebrows lifted in surprise: one hit and Vegeta was bleeding? He looked up at Jedin with new respect and awe. The only other person who'd done that was Goku.

"Listen, Goten," Vegeta said, his voice pitched not to carry to Jedin. Goten looked over at him. "I'm not lying about him. He _did_ destroy the city, not me." Goten shrugged again.

"I'm supposed to believe that?"

"Believe what you want," Vegeta sneered, "but don't say I didn't warn you about him." They both looked back up at Jedin. "Don't tell me that's all you've got, kid!"

"I'm just getting started, Vegeta," he replied, beckoning him back up with one hand. "Give me all you've got." One of Vegeta's eyebrows shot up, making Goten groan inwardly. His friend was in for it now. Vegeta's pride wouldn't allow him to be bested by a mere child, and both boys knew it.

"You asked for it, Jedin," he answered, wiping the blood off his face with the back of his hand. Keeping his gaze on Jedin, he transformed into a Super Sayan, and shot into the air once more.

"Easier said than done, Vegeta!" Jedin taunted, blocking blow after blow. He took an opening and delivered a kick to his middle that drove Vegeta back. Goten shook his head again as his friend waited for Vegeta to recover, instead of pressing his attack.

"Losing your nerve?"

"Breathe, Vegeta," he advised condescendingly, "or you'll turn purple." He cocked an eyebrow, studying the Sayan Prince. "It's not your color."

"Fashion advice from a boy whose shirts are too small and pants are too big?" Vegeta laughed and Jedin's glare. "We won't go there." Surprising Vegeta, Jedin transformed himself into a Super Sayan. Growling low in his throat, he attacked again, more furiously that before. "That's more like it!"

"Shut up and fight, Vegeta!"

"If you insist," Vegeta agreed, and obligingly said nothing more, letting the blows raining down on Jedin speak for themselves.

"Uh-oh," Goten murmured to himself a few minutes later as he watched Jedin manage to drive his elbow into the back of Vegeta's head, bring his knee up into his face, then send him crashing to the ground again with a double fisted blow to his back. "Oh, ouch!" he winced as Vegeta's body left an ever bigger crater than before. He actually bounced, turning to land face up before he lost consciousness. Jedin was about to blast him with a power volley when a new voice broke in, distracting them.

"Kamehameha!" A blue streak came from off to their left. Jedin quickly moved out of the way, while Goten spun in that direction.

"Gohan!"

"What's going on here, Goten?" Gohan demanded, his tone colder than Goten had ever heard it before. "What happened to Vegeta?"

"Just a little misunderstanding," he replied indifferently, shrugging one shoulder. "That's all."

"I don't call the destruction of half a city a 'little misunderstanding'," his brother said, one eyebrow lifting at the devastation around them. "Who did this?" He looked up at Jedin and Goten stepped between his friend and his brother. "Goten--"

"Don't, Gohan," he interrupted with a small shake of his head. "I'm not going through this again."

"Again?"

"Vegeta already thinks he's done it. Tell me you don't, too."

"I don't know what to believe, Goten," Gohan told him honestly, not entirely sure he liked the fact that his little brother was standing up for Turles' son. "I mean, I don't know if he did it or not. Technically, he should be a few years younger than _me_, not _your_ age, Goten."

"When Buu appeared, I was elven," Jedin put in from the air, "and when he destroyed everyone on the planet, I went to Otherworld, like everyone else. Goten told me that the wish was supposed to wipe everyone's memories of Buu, but I remember." Keeping a wary eye on the unconscious Vegeta, he continued, "When the wish was made to bring back everyone killed by Buu, I came back as a nine year old for some reason, but with all the powers I'd worked at building in Otherworld."

"By Dende," Gohan breathed, stunned by the boy's tale.

"You're right, Gohan," Jedin said with a quick nod to Goten's brother, "I _should_ be a few years younger than you, but thanks to that wish, I became a child again."

Unknown to everyone, Vegeta wasn't unconscious. He'd heard every word they said, and was now waiting for just the right moment to make his move.

"You never mentioned it before, Jedin," Goten was saying, looking up at him.

"It never seemed important before now," he answered with a small shrug.

"Can we talk about this later?" Gohan asked, ready in case Jedin decided to attack him, too. "We don't have long before Vegeta wakes up." He chuckled a little. "From the size of that hole, he's going to be _really_ upset."

"Upset doesn't _begin_ to cover it," Goten replied with a small smile.

"Whatever," Jedin sneered, sending the energy blasts intended for Vegeta at Gohan instead.

"Move, Goten!" Gohan shoved Goten out of the way when he didn't move, blocking the incoming energy blast. Gritting his teeth, he sent them back at Jedin. It quickly became a deadly game of tennis between them, each sending volley after volley at the other. Vegeta, forgotten by them all, got to his feet and did something that hadn't been done in almost twenty years: he created an artificial moon.

"Let's see how much of a Sayan you _really_ are, kid," he muttered, tossing the silvery blue ball into the air.

"Vegeta, what have you done?" Goten shouted, jumping to his feet. Gohan, hearing, sent the last volley into the ruins behind them. He looked up, saw the ball shooting into the sky, and felt something close to panic land like a lead weight in his stomach.

"Destroy it, Vegeta!" he ordered, spinning around to face the other Sayan.

"No."

"Then I will!" Gohan turned again, this time to destroy the artificial moon, but Vegeta sent an energy blast an inch away from his face to stop him in his tracks. "Damn it, Vegeta!"

"Leave it!" the Sayan Prince growled, keeping an eye on Jedin. "If he doesn't have a tail, nothing will happen."

"And if he does?"

"We can handle it." Gohan took in his condition: if a Sayan as powerful as Vegeta could be reduced to blood, bruises and broken bones in a short fight with Jedin, what would happen if he turned into a giant ape?

"Somehow, I doubt that, Vegeta," he mumbled to himself, turning back to keep an eye on Jedin. What happened next took them both- and the rest of Earth's defenders- by surprise.

To Be Continued . . .


	5. Two Great Apes?

**Disclaimer:** Once again, folks, I don't own it. Never have and never will. I suppose I'll get used to that someday. Jedin _is_ still mine and still my friend, Jason's. We're not giving him up without a fight. Any and all original characters, attacks and even time lines aren't mine, just this one. I'm just having a little fun, and making no money off this.

**AN:** In the last exciting- and painful- chapter, Jedin found out the truth about his father, went Super Sayan for the first time and in a rage killed his adoptive parents, tricking Goten into passing the blame to Vegeta. During a short, intense battle, Gohan arrived just in time to see Vegeta create an artificial moon to try and draw out Jedin's Sayan powers. Will it have an unexpected effect on one of the other members of Earth's fighting forces? Find out in this chapter, and don't forget to review, folks.

I couldn't help myself with that one. I had to have a little more fun. In any case, on with the battle!

Meditating, as usual, Piccolo hovered over a waterfall, legs folded under him, hands clasped in his lap, his senses extended as far as they'd go. Always alert to any sudden surge of power from one of his friends, his brows lowered over closed eyes as he felt several strange surges through the day, leaving him completely confused. Fifteen minutes ago, he'd felt two more surges, both massive and from the same direction. He felt Vegeta and Gohan nearby, one of the powers felt like Goten, but one of them was completely unfamiliar to him. Something strange was going on, and he was going to find out what it was . . . but he was going to need help. He wondered if Tien, Chiaotzu and Yamcha were around tonight. He was fairly certain they were. Where else would they be?

Standing on thin air, he flew off into the night. As he rose into the trees, he could see an artificial moon in the distance, and realized there was only one person on Earth who could create one: Vegeta. Something was _definitely_ wrong here . . . "Oh, no," he breathed, the pieces falling into place. It had to be Jedin, that kid that Goten had been hanging out with! _He_ was the unknown power source he sensed near Vegeta and Gohan. "We're in trouble."

Pouring on the speed, he reversed directions and braced himself for what he might find and have to do when he got there.

"Did you feel that?" Chiaotzu looked up at Tien at the question, clearly puzzled. Despite the late hour, they'd been training, as they usually did, but Tien had suddenly stopped, like he'd been turned to stone. "It feels like a battle," Tien went on, his eyes closed as he tried to find out where it was coming from. Chiaotzu did the same, seeking the disturbance Tien was talking about.

"You're right," he answered, catching it. The fight was some distance away from them, and they could both feel that Gohan and Vegeta were involved, as well as Goten, with Piccolo quickly closing the distance. Yamcha and Trunks were coming toward them, revealing that they felt it, too. There was one more person there, one who's power they'd never felt before and couldn't place. "Let's go." Tien nodded.

"We'll meet Trunks and Yamcha on the way," Tien replied as they took to the air and left their training field behind them.

"What's going on?" Trunks wondered aloud as he and Yamcha flew to gather Tien and Chiaotzu before heading to the battlefield.

"I don't have a clue, Trunks," Yamcha replied with a shake of his head, wondering if Krillin would be there when they arrived. "I wish I knew."

"I haven't felt power like that from my father since he last fought Goku."

"It must be really serious, then."

"We're about to find out, I suppose," he said with a sigh, spotting Tien and Chiaotzu coming toward them. "Looks like they're already coming."

"Let's get moving. We don't want the fight to be over before we get there," Yamcha answered with a ghost of a smile. "Besides, I want to know what's going on, myself." When Tien and Chiaotzu met up with them, they all turned and flew toward the battle, faster than before, all of them worried about what they might or might not find when they got there.

They all froze, watching the sliver-blue ball ascend into the sky. As it rose, Goten glared at Vegeta, shaking with fear and outrage. He was terrified that something would happen to Jedin, and was beyond pissed that Vegeta would resort to such a tactic to teach Jedin a lesson. "This is bad, this is bad," he muttered, looking back up at his friend. Jedin was staring intently at the artificial moon, watching as if hypnotized as it rose higher and higher into the sky. "Jedin, look away!"

"Why?" he asked in reply. "This could be fun."

"Destroy it, Vegeta!" Gohan demanded again: this time, Vegeta ignored him, keeping his gaze on Jedin, listening with only half an ear as Goten pleaded with him to look away from it. Gohan was turning to destroy it himself again when he _really_ looked at Jedin and realized it was too late. He was already changing into a giant ape: his eyes turned completely white, and his face began to lengthen. Dark brown fur began to grow on his face as fangs exploded in his elongated mouth. He bent forward, as if he'd just been punched in the stomach, before he arched violently back, his body growing in length and breadth, reducing his clothes to tatters and revealing a full tail.

Feeling another surge of power, Gohan spun to see Goten beginning to change, as well. Keeping the secret of his regenerating tail hadn't been easy, but he'd done just that, telling no one, not his family, and not his friend. "Get away from him, Vegeta!" he shouted, ready to move the Sayan Prince himself if he had to. Vegeta looked at Goten and moved as quickly as his wounds would allow out of the way. They could only look on in horror as both boys finished the transformation. "Oh, shit," he muttered when Jedin turned to face him, staring intently at him for a moment before he attacked him. He only had a fleeting glimpse of Vegeta taking to the air to avoid a swat by Goten that missed him by about an inch before he had to focus his attention on Jedin once more.

Vegeta was in trouble, and he knew it. While he hadn't expected Jedin to be able to hurt him as much as he was, his pride wouldn't allow him to back down now. With Jedin attacking Gohan, he was left alone to defend himself from Goten. Unable to control himself, Goten had fixated on Vegeta and was bent on destroying him. From what Vegeta had seen, Jedin could control himself in Ape form at least a little, but Goten was unpredictable and unstable. He'd have to stay on his toes.

If he could cut off his tail, Goten would revert to his human form again, probably remembering nothing about becoming an Ape at all. Memories came with control, and Goten had a long way to go for that. It wasn't going to be easy fighting Goten with his injuries, but he'd do it . . . even if it killed him again. At least he'd get to see that idiot Kakarot again. Maybe this time, he'd defeat him.

He barely avoided an energy blast that had been aimed at Gohan- who'd dodged it by an inch- before he had to avoid another from Goten. Though the blood from his wounds was slowly stopping, Vegeta was sure he had more on the inside that were quickly sapping his strength. He had to end the fight . . . soon, or Goten would rage until the moon either disappeared or was destroyed. _Stupid of me to create the thing,_ he admitted as he found an opening and struck Goten hard enough to drive him back, taking a moment to get his breath back. There was nothing he could do about it now, though, as Goten attacked again, landing a blow that sent him flying into Gohan and sent them both to the ground.

"Nice going, Vegeta," Gohan groaned, pushing himself up to his elbows.

"Oh, shut up, Gohan," Vegeta replied with a growl, slowly getting to his feet, one arm cradled to his chest. "We've got to stop them."

"How do you plan on doing that?"

"We cut off their tails."

"How?"

"I haven't quite worked that out yet." He looked at Gohan, who was standing up, slowly. "Any bright ideas?"

"Not yet," he answered with a sigh, then shrugged. "Back to business, then." He was back in the air and on the attack again a moment later, beating Vegeta to it by a heartbeat. The fight between Goten and Vegeta began again.

They caught up with Piccolo not far from the battlefield, none of them missing the artificial moon in the air and not one but two apes. Vegeta was wounded and Gohan was barely staying ahead of the blows and energy blasts headed his way, so far not able to return any of his own. _Why are there _two _apes?_ Trunks asked himself, confused before the pieces fell into place. One of them _had_ to be Jedin, while the other . . . was Goten.

"By Dende," Tien whispered, shock holding him immobile for a moment. "_Two_ of them?"

"Goten and Jedin," Piccolo answered, not taking his eyes off the battlefield. "We've got to stop them."

"How?" Yamcha demanded, shoving a hand through his hair. "Vegeta and Gohan are barely holding on. What are we supposed to do?"

"Lighten the load," Chiaotzu replied, his little face set with determination. "We can give them a little break, let them recover."

"Good idea," Krillin broke in, surprising them all. He lifted an eyebrow. "Shall we?"

"Let's do this," Trunks said with a small smile. "I've been itching for a fight lately." That said, he was off again, ducking a blow from Goten and landing one of his own. Piccolo chuckled, feeling the same way, and joined Gohan.

"It's about time!" Vegeta shouted as Tien, Chiaotzu, Krillin and Yamcha joined the fight as well, taking advantage of the opportunity they presented to take stock of his injuries and catch his breath. "What in the hell took you so long?"

"Taking in the show, Vegeta," Yamcha replied with a laugh. "You were doing pretty good for yourself."

"If you want to live through the next five seconds," Vegeta growled, barely blocking another energy blast from Goten, "you'll shut up, idiot."

"Are you all right, Father?" Vegeta slanted Trunks an irritated look.

"Worry about yourself, boy. I've had worse from Kakarot." He looked back toward the fight and a slight smile curved his lips. "I'm glad you're here." Trunks was stunned, frozen in place as Vegeta's words sank in. He hadn't said anything like that to him since they'd fought against Buu, and right after that, he'd knocked him unconscious then gave his all to stop Buu. It hadn't worked, but that hadn't been the point. "Don't stand around, boy!" Vegeta shouted, taking off and joining the battle again. "We've got work to do!" Trunks shook himself and took to the air again.

"Yes, Father," Trunks sighed as Gohan got slammed to the ground by a blow from Jedin. He joined the fight once more, knowing Gohan could take care of himself.

"Damn it!" Gohan swore as he used a nearby tree to pull himself to his feet. Now _he_ was bleeding, and his right leg wouldn't support him. He fervently wished that he hadn't quit training every day: Jedin in Ape form was tough, almost on the same level as Cell. "Should have blown that thing up when I had the chance," he muttered, rising into the air again to take the weight off his injured leg, the relief instantaneous.

Goten was taking on both Yamcha and Krillin, neither of them landing a blow, but Goten didn't, either. He could see Trunks edging around behind him, trying to get his tail, using the other two as a distraction. Some instinct must have warned Goten because he spun around and grabbed Trunks in one massive hand before he could react. "That didn't work!" Yamcha cried, flinching in sympathy when Goten tightened his grip. "Any other ideas?"

"Just one," Krillin replied through clenched teeth. "Destructo disk!"

"Throw it!" Trunks shouted, fighting to get free. Goten only closed his hand more tightly around him, cutting off his hoarse cry of pain.

"Tri Beam!" Tien's most powerful attack struck Goten in the back, loosening his grip on Trunks for only a moment, just long enough for him to break free.

"Kamehameha!" Gohan's attack finally knocked Goten out of the air and unconscious. "Now, Krillin!" he shouted, and Krillin threw the disk, neatly cutting off Goten's tail. Jedin roared in anger as Goten reverted to his human form, renewing his attack on Piccolo and Vegeta. Weakened by blood loss, Vegeta was too slow as he tried to dodge the next blow from Jedin, knocked down and out.

"That's it, Jedin!" Not thinking too clearly at seeing his father lying motionless below them, Trunks rushed at him, and Jedin waited for the chance to make his move.

"Trunks, look out!" Krillin shouted, flying faster than he ever had before. He slammed into Trunks, knocking him out of the way and taking the blow that had been meant for the younger fighter. Krillin went down hard, the force of the blow knocking him unconscious and made a crater larger than the ones Vegeta had made when he hit the ground earlier. Tien, Chiaotzu and Yamcha quickly followed him, leaving Piccolo, Trunks and an injured Gohan to fight alone.

"This isn't going to be easy," Trunks said to Gohan, firing an energy blast at Jedin who dodged at the last moment. It exploded behind him, taking out another building, leveling it completely.

"When has it _ever_ been easy?" Gohan asked in reply as he ducked under a return swipe. "I don't remember anything like that, do you?"

"Maybe the World Tournament all those years ago," Trunks chuckled, landing a mighty blow that sent Jedin back from them. "That was _too_ easy."

"That was then," Piccolo broke in, landing an energy blast of his own on Jedin's chest, "this is now." He followed the blast with a mix of punches and kicks to keep him off balance. "We've got more important things to do."

"Yes, Piccolo." They both shrugged and joined Piccolo. "Hey, Trunks," Gohan said a while later.

"What is it?"

"Get behind him. Piccolo and I will distract him so you can get his tail."

"That didn't work so well last time."

"You'll just have to move a bit faster this time, Trunks," Piccolo said with a smile, approving of the plan.

"Let's end this." Putting actions to words, Gohan and Piccolo attacked together, keeping Jedin's attention on them while Trunks went around him. Gohan was knocked back, but, recovering quickly, charged in again. Taking this, their last chance, Trunks drew his sword as he rushed in. With a single swipe of the shining silver blade, he took Jedin's tail.

"Finally," Trunks panted, watching Jedin revert to his human form.

"Let's see," Jedin began, stunning them all, "how many of you were there? Seven? Well, four out of seven isn't bad." He laughed evilly. "Let's make it five, just for fun." Not taking his eyes from Gohan and Piccolo, he fired an energy blast at Trunks, sending him flying back into one of the few buildings left standing and fired another to bring it down on top of him.

"Piccolo, do you remember what my father did with Raditz?" Gohan asked through clenched teeth.

"Yeah. So?"

"Do it again." Piccolo gaped at him. He could see from his face that he was completely serious.

"What?!"

"Do it again!"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Gohan."

"It's all we've got left." He gave Piccolo a look he recognized from Goku: the half smile on his face, and the determination in his black eyes. He'd do whatever it took to stop Jedin, even if it meant his death.

"Goku's going to kill me," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. "ChiChi, too."

"We've got the dragon balls, Piccolo," Gohan reminded him, looking back up at Jedin. "You can just wish me back."

"All right," Piccolo finally said after taking a long moment to think it over. It really _was_ their only option, and he wanted Jedin stopped as much as Gohan did. "We've got more than one shot this time--"

"No, we don't, Piccolo" Gohan argued softly. "I'm too weak to hold him for long. It's all or nothing . . . just like my father."

"Very well, then," Piccolo replied, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Just what are you two whispering about?" Jedin asked, playfully shaking a finger at them. "Secrets don't make friends, you know."

"You'll find out soon enough," Gohan said and moved faster than either Piccolo or Jedin expected, catching hold of Jedin from behind. His hands linked behind Jedin's head, he held Jedin's arms out to the side, immobile, and tangled their legs together, giving Jedin no room to escape. "Now, Piccolo!" Seeing his death in Piccolo's eyes, and knowing he couldn't break free of Gohan's hold, Jedin appealed to the one person who was solidly on his side.

"Goten, help me!" he cried, sounding genuinely afraid for the first time since the fight had begun. Below them, Goten woke slowly, turning to look up and saw his friend caught fast in his brother's hold. "Please, Goten!"

"Special Beam Cannon!" _Forgive me, Goten,_ he thought as he watched the thin yellow beam go straight through both Jedin and Gohan. Just like with Raditz, there were no bodies left behind, not even ashes, both of them just gone as if they'd never been there at all. Goten surged to his feet, ignoring the pain from his wounds, both from this fight and the one from earlier in the day with Jedin.

"Piccolo, how could you?"

"I did what I had to, Goten," Piccolo replied, not turning around out of courtesy for the young man's naked state. "It was the only way we could stop him from hurting or killing anymore people."

"You'll answer for this one day, Piccolo," Goten swore, and Piccolo stiffened at his tone. "You'll pay for killing my friend, and the only one I call my family." Whipping around, Piccolo was stunned to see Goten gone, too fast to follow and too far away to sense now, which was probably just as well for the moment. He had to get the others to Dende as quickly as possible for healing, then find a way to tell ChiChi that Gohan was dead, at least for now, and that Goten was missing. Maybe he'd let Krillin handle that one, or perhaps Trunks.

He wasn't good at that kind of thing, and ChiChi terrified him.

A rumble from the building where Trunks was buried warned him to duck as an energy blast came from underneath the rubble, blasting a hole big enough for Trunks to fly through. "Where's Gohan?" he asked immediately, seeing the empty battlefield, and Piccolo shook his head. "Jedin?"

"Dead, thanks to Gohan." He explained what had happened while he gathered the others from where they lay. "Goten's gone, too."

"Dead?" Piccolo shook his head again.

"Disappeared."

"I see." An eerie silence had fallen over the remains of the city, and as Trunks looked out over the destruction the fight had caused, he said, "It's probably best for now. Jedin would have had much to answer for, and by extension, Goten would, as well." He looked down at their unconscious friends, and lifted an amused brow at Piccolo. "Need a hand?"

Tears of grief and anger running down his face, Goten climbed into the last Sayan pod on Earth. He and Jedin had found it high in the mountains one hot summer day, restless and looking for something new to do. They'd experimented with the controls, having a great time opening and closing the pod, both from the inside and the outside. There was a Sayan suit of armor tucked into a compartment under the seat, left over from the pod's previous owner. Pulling it on, he closed the pod and pushed the button to launch the pod into outer space.

Exhausted from the battle and changing into an Ape and back again, sick at heart at watching his friend and brother die, Goten went to sleep, not bothering to set coordinates into the pod's computer, letting it wander where it would. He honestly didn't care if he never saw Earth or his family again.

He had no way of knowing it, but he'd be back, several years older and much more powerful than when he'd left.

To Be Continued . . .


	6. Surprise! Goku Returns!

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Dragonball Z or any of the original characters, time lines or attacks. I'm borrowing them for the story and am making no money off of it. With that torture finished once again, on to the story!

**AN**: In the last pain filled chapter of Dragonball Z, Gohan made the ultimate sacrifice to save the Earth and his friends. But Goten, unconscious for the first half of the battle, woke in time to see his friend killed by Piccolo. Torn by rage and grief, he left Earth behind, with no intention of ever returning. Where will Goten go and what will he learn when he gets there? What surprises await our heroes? Find out in this exciting chapter of Dragonball Z.

I just can't seem to help myself with that one. Don't forget to read and review, folks. Fair warning, everyone: there's going to be a lot of character deaths in this chapter.

Swearing, Pan glared up at Trunks when he offered her a hand to help her to her feet. He'd kicked them out from under her in the first place, as he usually ended up doing at least five times when they sparred together. She hadn't quite learned to avoid it, and that was probably why he kept doing it. _He'll keep doing it, too,_ she thought darkly to herself, _until I learn to either block it or avoid the move altogether._ Heaving a sigh, she put her hand in his and let him pull her to her feet.

"That's enough for today," he said, tossing her a towel and keeping the other. "I'm going to have bruises from that last attack, Pan."

"You're getting old, Trunks," she teased with a smile, knowing she'd have more bruises than he would. "Getting whipped by a girl."

"Watch your tongue, little girl," Trunks replied, using his best impression of his father's voice, teasing her in turn. "That's no way to speak to the son of the Sayan Prince." She laughed, her dark eyes twinkling at him with amusement.

"You do that very well, Trunks," she told him, still chuckling. "Speaking of Vegeta, where'd he take off to?" Trunks shrugged one shoulder, before bending to pick up his water bottle.

"I have no idea," he answered truthfully after taking a long drink from the bottle. "He doesn't tell me where he goes." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Where's yours?"

"He and Mom went to visit Grandma." Trunks remembered then that it had been ten years to the day since Goten had disappeared for parts unknown. Though they'd searched for him, they had found no trace of him on Earth and Gohan, during his brief stay in Otherworld, had asked around, but no one knew anything. King Kai hadn't been able to sense him, and even Goku had come up with nothing.

"Why didn't you go with them? We could have done this tomorrow."

"I had a feeling they'd want to be alone with Grandma today," she eventually said with a small sigh, "and I didn't want to intrude." Trunks was surprised, but he managed to keep it from his expression: sometimes, Pan sounded much older than she should.

"How about we have lunch?" he asked suddenly to change the subject, and because he heard her stomach growl.

"Are you cooking?"

"We won't live too long if I did that," he chuckled at the suspicious look in her eyes. "I'll order out."

"All right!"

"It's good to see you, Gohan." ChiChi smiled in genuine welcome at her eldest son and Videl, wrapping her arms around first one then the other, holding tightly for a moment before letting go to study them.

"You look good, Mom." Even though her hair was grayer and there were more lines on her face than there had been even five years before, he spoke the truth. She was the same as she'd always been: unapologetically pushy and nosy, outwardly strong, but inside she was a marshmallow for her children and grandchildren.

"You're never too old to appreciate a flattering lie from a young man," she laughed, giving him an extra hug. Videl smiled and wrapped her arms around both of them, making a circle.

"He's right, ChiChi," Videl argued, dropping a kiss on her cheek. Though she could freely admit that Gohan's mother had intimidated her at first, she'd come to love and respect her for holding her family together through good times and bad, and all the times in between, often single-handedly. "You're as beautiful as ever."

"Ha!" ChiChi scoffed, but with a twinkle in her eyes they were happy to see. "You only _wish_ you could look _half_ this good when you get this old." She sighed and rested her head on Gohan's shoulder for a moment, sadness replacing the amusement in her eyes from just a moment before.

"I miss him, too, Mom," Gohan whispered, tightening his arms around her for a moment.

"Ten years," she said with another sigh, "and not one word or even a hint of where he is." She drew back enough to look up at him, her eyes swimming with tears. "I know you did what you had to do to stop Jedin. I'm just worried about Goten."

"He's still alive . . . somewhere," Gohan answered with a sigh of his own. He missed his little brother, and had since he'd met Jedin and started drifting away from them. Where Goten was and had been for the last ten years and what he was doing was a mystery to them, one only Goten himself could solve. There was one thing he knew for sure, though: if his brother had been killed, he'd know about it.

"Well," ChiChi said eventually, smiling, "I don't know about you two, but I'm hungry. Cooking for just myself took some getting used to, as I was so used to making enough at every meal to feed an army, so I've got a lot of food just waiting to be eaten."

"Now that you mention it," Videl replied as Gohan's stomach growled. She and ChiChi laughed as he blushed a little in embarrassment.

Piccolo hovered over his favorite place to meditate, the waterfall roaring unnoticed behind him, the trees swaying in the slight breeze. He knew what day it was, but refused to take part in the get-together at ChiChi's, or at The Lookout. There were a few too many people for him today. He wanted only the sound of the falls, the mist that, if he was there long enough, would soak his clothes, and the quiet of the forest around him.

Feeling a familiar power coming toward him, his eyes snapped open. "Goku?" he asked himself, getting to his feet in midair. There was a flash of light and an impact he heard over the roar of the falls. It was close . . . whatever it was. With the others too far away to sense the power or hear the crash, he decided to go alone to investigate. If the worst happened, and it was a new enemy, the others would sense it and rush to find out what was going on.

His clothes dried quickly as he flew toward the crash site, the power he'd felt earlier getting more definite as he approached. The dust from the impact still hadn't settled by the time he got there, so he landed cautiously, not know what would happen when it did, ready to take off again if he had to. When the dust finally cleared, a Sayan pod lay at the bottom of the crater the impact had created. _Goku wouldn't use a Sayan pod,_ Piccolo thought, his gut clenching a little. There was a loud hiss as the pressure in the pod equalized with the outside air, the door opening moments later. Piccolo had only seen Goku at Super Sayan 3 once, but he'd never forget the sight as long as he lived: golden hair reached well past his waist and muscles seemed to bulge on top of other muscles.

The one who stepped out of the pod looked so much like Goku that he could be his twin . . . or his son. He knew Gohan was with ChiChi today, and Goten . . . _Could it be_ Goten? Piccolo asked himself in amazement, hardly daring to believe his eyes. For ten years, they'd wondered where he'd gone and what he'd been up to, and now here he was, big as life as he stepped away from the pod and looked around.

Obviously sensing his power, Goten turned to face him, and it was then that he noticed that Goten's eyes had turned completely black and his irises were white. His body was covered with jagged scars, as if someone had tried to take him apart, thought better of it, then stitched him roughly back together again. "Goten?" he asked aloud, almost afraid of the answer.

"Hello again, Piccolo," Goten replied, sounding like a cross between Goku and Vegeta. He saw the reason for it when Goten looked up at him: another jagged scar ran around his neck from ear to ear, slashing across his vocal chords, the wound deep, like someone had tried to decapitate him . . . and only partially succeeded. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Ten years," Piccolo agreed with a nod. "Ten years _today_, as a matter of fact."

"That's right," Goten murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as if he'd forgotten why he'd left in the first place. He pinned Piccolo with a glare that made him glad that looks couldn't kill. "Ten years ago," he said, his hand dropping to his side, "you killed my best friend." Moving faster than Piccolo expected, Goten attacked, one hand wrapped around his throat and easily holding him a foot of the ground.

"I did what I had to, Goten," he choked, surprise and shock stealing his breath as much as the hand around his throat.

"Really?" One of Goten's eyebrows twitched upward. "Then so am I." He lifted his other hand, an energy ball cupped in it.

"Goten, don't do this."

"No mercy, Piccolo," he said with a slight shake of his head. "Just like Jedin."

"Goten!" Piccolo pleaded, but was ignored this time. Using the energy ball in his hand, Goten used it to blow Piccolo's head off, dropping the lifeless body before incinerating it. He made sure Piccolo wouldn't rise again, not without the dragonballs, and he had a plan for them.

"Hey, Master Roshi!" called a much-missed voice from outside Master Roshi's house. Stumbling over Turtle in his rush to get to the door, Roshi ended up on his face in the grass at the feet of his visitor. Pushing himself to his hands and knees, he spat out the dirt and grass in his mouth. "Gosh, Master Roshi. Are you all right?"

"Of course I am!" he shouted, jumping to his feet and waving his cane. "It'll take more than that blasted tortoise to stop me!" His visitor laughed delightedly, making him look up . . . and up. "Goku?"

"Yup, it's me, Master Roshi!"

"How? I thought you didn't want to come back to Earth!"

"Well, King Yemma said that if I went to HFIL and beat Brolli again, he'd give me a reward." Goku rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I didn't know that _this_ is what he meant until it was done."

"Have you been home yet?"

"Not yet," he answered, his smile fading a little. "Why?"

"You came here first just to see my jaw drop, didn't you?"

"I came by to see how you are, Master Roshi," Goku explained, holding both hands up in self-defense as his former master advanced on him. "Seeing your face fall like that was a bonus, that's all." He looked around. "Where is everyone?"

"Either at your house or at The Lookout," Roshi told him, smiling a little.

"Why aren't you?"

"I'm busy today."

"Doing what?"

"That's none of your business, Goku!" he shouted, firing up again. "You should go home, see everyone, and get something to eat before you pass out!"

"Good idea," Goku said, and with a wave, used Instant Transmission to go home.

"Get back here, Goku! I wasn't finished with you!" Master Roshi sighed, then laughed when he realized he was alone once more. He went back inside, stepping over the still sleeping Turtle and settling back down in front of the TV. Neither he nor Turtle saw or even felt the energy blast that obliterated their island and sent them both to Otherworld before they knew what hit them.

"Goku!"

"Dad!" Goku laughed as his wife and eldest son threw themselves at him, catching them against him and holding tight. "When did you get back to Earth?"

"A few minutes ago," he replied, tightening his arm around ChiChi a little when he felt her tears on his shoulder. "I stopped by Master Roshi's for a minute before coming here." He gave Gohan one more squeeze before wrapping both arms around ChiChi. "Don't cry, dear."

"What is it?" Gohan asked, gently putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Almost," she whispered just loud enough for the two of them to hear. "It's almost perfect." Understanding dawned for them: Goten was still missing and there was no way of knowing if he was still alive. Though King Yemma had assured Goku that Goten hadn't come through, it was still possible. "I'm glad you're home, Goku."

"It's good to _be_ home, ChiChi," he answered with a chuckle. "Is that food I smell?" ChiChi laughed.

"Some things never change!"

"What's all the fuss out here abou- Goku!" Bulma cried, her eyes widening in surprise.

"How's it going, Bulma?"

"Better now that you're back." She looked puzzled about that. "I thought--"

"It's a long story, guys. I'll tell it later." He sighed in appreciation of the smells wafting out of the kitchen. "Let's eat first."

"What is it, Vegeta?" Dende asked when Vegeta stiffened beside him, turning to look over the side of The Lookout. Krillin and Eighteen looked up at the question, Tien and Chiaotzu stopped their sparring matched and even Yamcha looked surprised.

"Kakarot's back," he growled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Goku's home!" Krillin shouted, jumping to his feet only to be caught by Yamcha in headlock and given a noogie.

"It's good that he's back," Dende said to Mr. Popo, who nodded in agreement. "I've missed him."

"We all have, Dende," the tiny black man replied, "even Vegeta, though he'll never admit it." Dende laughed.

"That's true. It's not his style." He looked over at the others: Krillin was struggling in Yamcha's grip, shouting for him to let go, while Eighteen looked on with a slight smile. Tien and Chiaotzu were laughing at Krillin, neither making a move to help their friend. "All right, you two," he called with a chuckle, "that's enough!" On principle, Yamcha held Krillin just a little longer and gave him another noogie before he let go.

"Let's go see him," Yamcha said as Krillin used both hands to straighten his hair again.

"I don't think so," Vegeta scoffed, glaring down at the ground.

"Come on, Vegeta, Krillin argued, his hair back in place," you might get to punch him today." One of Vegeta's eyebrows twitched. "Not only that," he went on, pausing for a second and looking thoughtful, "but ChiChi's cooking--"

"Let's go!" Whatever Vegeta could say about ChiChi- and he could say plenty- she was a much better cook than Bulma, and both he and Bulma knew it. The others watched, laughing, as Vegeta simply stepped off The Lookout and flew off. Following his example only moments later, they all waved to Dende and Mr. Popo until they were lost from sight. Turning to Mr. Popo once more, he sighed.

"It's _really_ good that Goku's back," he said with a smile. "It's too quiet without him."

"Yes, Dende," Mr. Popo replied with a sigh of his own, "it's very good to have Goku home again."

**To Be Continued . . . **


	7. Reunion

**Disclaimer:** Don't own it, and never will. The attacks, time lines, and original characters aren't mine and I'm making no money off them, either. With that infernal torture over once again, let's get back to the story.

**AN:** In the last chapter, both Goku and Goten returned to Earth. Goku was the same as always, but Goten had changed- more than anyone knew- after spending the last ten years wandering the universe. While Goku traveled to see Master Roshi, Piccolo met Goten and was killed for his part in stopping Jedin. Moments after Goku left Master Roshi's island for home, the island exploded, taking the lives of both Master Roshi and Turtle. Who or what is Goten's next target and will he stop once his need for revenge is satisfied? Find out more in this exciting chapter, and don't forget to review, folks.

Possibilities of character death in this one: I haven't decided yet. You've been warned.

Goku stepped outside just as the others landed in his yard. "Hey, guys!" he called to get their attention. He was met with mile-wide grins from everyone except Vegeta, but then he'd expected that.

"You're back!"

"It's been so long--" Krillin began only to be cut off by Tien.

"I thought you didn't want to come back!" Goku waited through all the talking and interrupted greetings with a smile. Vegeta just crossed his arms and acknowledged him with a small nod, which was more than he usually did. Eighteen, also as usual, didn't say much but then she never had to: Krillin always did the talking for her, but she gave Goku a slight smile and a nod. He returned it and sent a cheeky grin at Vegeta, knowing it would make his blood boil.

More often than not, all he had to do was _breathe_ around Vegeta to annoy him, but there were rare times he went out of his way to do it, and almost always to Vegeta's advantage, like when he went Super Sayan for the first time. Vegeta forgot that in temper, but Goku never did and used it whenever he could in battle to bring out more of his potential. He wondered if Vegeta knew it, but doubted it.

"What's going on out--" Gohan was asking as he followed his father, and the noise, outside, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the bright light. "Guys! I thought you were at The Lookout!"

"We decided to drop by," Krillin answered with a grin, "and got a major bonus when we saw Goku." Goku laughed at that.

"That's baloney, Krillin!" he argued with a chuckle. "You all sensed me and came running to see if it was true!"

"Well, it's true enough," Krillin muttered with a blush, rubbing the back of his neck. Even Vegeta chuckled at that, seeming to forget his irritation with Goku for a moment.

"By the way, Dad," Gohan said, bringing everyone's attention to him, "Mom says dinner's ready."

"Great!"

"Good thing I made more than even you could eat, Goku," ChiChi laughed, stepping out behind Gohan and seeing everyone gathered around him. "There might even be leftovers."

"Not in this house," Goku and Gohan promised together, and made everyone laugh . . . including Vegeta.

Though he'd been planning this for over a year, Goten pondered his next move. The next logical place to go was The Lookout, but he'd sensed that only Dende and Mr. Popo were there at the moment. He could go home, but decided against that for the moment. While he knew everyone was there, dropping by wasn't how he wanted to get their attention. There was always the option of dropping into a city during rush hour, standing still for a minute or two, then destroying cars, buildings and people. _No, that's been overdone,_ he thought, shaking his head a little and chuckling.

_How to cause maximum destruction without too much effort?_ Goten asked himself, taking no notice of how late it was getting. Behind him, the sun went down in a blaze of glory, turning the sky and water red and orange, and the stars had started to come out before it came to him. It wasn't going to be easy, but it could be done. Realizing just how late it had become, Goten sighed and decided to wait until morning.

Knowing he wouldn't sleep, and not that he did anymore, Goten went back to his pod and settled in for the night.

"Thanks for dinner, ChiChi," Krillin said, patting his full stomach, "it was terrific." She laughed.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," she answered, leaning against Goku when he put an arm around her shoulders, "and that you all stopped by."

"Yeah, it was great seeing everyone again," Goku put in, his smile infectious as he watched everyone get ready to leave. They'd spent hours talking, and shouting at each other, catching up, reminiscing and arguing. It was always like that when everyone got together, and Goku was happy that it hadn't changed. Many things did, and would again, but so many of the best things never would.

"We'll see you around," Yamcha was saying as he, Tien and Chiaotzu lifted off. "Bye, everyone!" They waved until they were out of sight, Krillin and Eighteen following a minute or so later. Vegeta gave ChiChi a nod and sent a challenging smile at Goku, letting Bulma say their farewells. Gohan and Videl left with them, to pick up Pan before heading home.

"Alone at last," Goku sighed, making ChiChi chuckle.

"It was just like old times," she said with her own sigh, "and really good to see them."

"I thought they were a bad influence on us."

"That was then," she laughed, "this is now." She smiled up at him. "You all saved the world how many times?"

"Six," he answered, "at last count."

"Exactly. No matter how much I wanted to keep my guys from fighting and keep you safe, I knew you'd fight anyway, and not give up until you'd won."

"I fought for the Earth," he told her, looking down with a perfectly serious expression on his face, "and for _you_ and the boys."

"I know that," she replied, reaching up to put a hand on his cheek, "otherwise I'd have tried to stop you more often, and tried harder."

"I love you, ChiChi."

"After all these years, you'd better!"

Goten hovered high above Capsule Corp's central building, studying the layout of the roof to find out where an energy blast would do the most damage on the way down. _Blowing up Capsule Corp is too easy,_ he told himself, _and over done. What I'm about to do has _never_ been done before._ Spotting exactly what he was looking for, he smiled and chuckled evilly. _This is going to be fun._

Focusing his energy, he sent a blast down the airshafts, splitting it so it traveled down each one, imploding the building one floor at a time. Once it was nothing more than a pile of smoking rubble, and because it was fun, he took out the nearest three buildings the same way. "That out to get their attention," he chuckled, flying off to avoid being seen there . . . for the moment, at least.

"Guys, we've got a problem!" ChiChi called from the house to Goku and Gohan as they sparred a little in the yard.

"What is it?" Goku asked, swiping an arm across his forehead.

"Capsule Corp has been destroyed!"

"Again?"

"Everyone was inside," she replied, walking out to meet them, "and instead of exploding, it imploded. Three other buildings as well."

"Imploded?" Gohan repeated, scratching his head. "That's new."

"Yeah, evil guys usually blow it up," Goku agreed with a nod, "not collapse it like that."

"Something's going on, Dad," he said, looking off into the trees. "We need to find out what."

"Dende or even Master Roshi might know."

"Hold it!" ChiChi said before either of them could fly off. "I won't be able to stop you, but I'll ask that you be careful."

"For you, Mom," Gohan chuckled, dropping a kiss on her cheek, "always."

"Since this is probably the last time I'll be sent back," Goku replied, rubbing the back of his neck, "I guess I'll have to be careful."

"Don't make me come to Otherworld looking for either of you."

"We won't," they answered together and took off, waving until they were lost from sight.

"You go see Dende, Gohan," Goku called over the wind of their flight. "I'll take Master Roshi."

"All right. Meet you at The Lookout?"

"See ya!"

"Good luck!"

"You, too!" They split up, each flying as fast as they could to their different destinations to get the information they needed. Something was definitely up, and they were going to find out what . . . hopefully before anyone else died.

"Sorry, Gohan," Dende said, shaking his head, "but the power I sensed this morning wasn't around long enough for me to tell who it was."

"Just perfect." He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair just as Goku appeared. They both turned to study him, neither of them mistaking the barely restrained fury in his eyes. "What is it?"

"Master Roshi's island is gone."

"What?!" Gohan and Dende demanded together, fury and fear in their voices. If the same person who'd destroyed Capsule Corp did it, they could be in serious trouble.

"There's nothing left of it," Goku continued, "or anything to even suggest it was there at all."

"Who could- _would_- do something like that?" Dende wondered, his hands clenched into fists at his sides and his gaze on his feet as he tried to puzzle it out.

"Has anyone seen Piccolo?"

"Not for a couple of days. Why?"

"That's odd, isn't it?"

"Not really," Gohan answered with a shrug, "at least for this time of year."

"Hmm. Dende, can you sense him?"

"No, and _that's_ odd," Dende replied after trying for a moment. "Even when he's hiding most of his power, I can still sense him. This isn't like him at all."

"Maybe we should look for him," Gohan suggested, but Goku shook his head.

"Where would we start?" Goku asked with a shrug. "No one knows exactly where he could be right now."

"If there's one thing that Piccolo kept secret," Mr. Popo broke in, "it's where he meditated everyday."

"That's true. So how do we find him?"

"He'll find us, I think, Dende," Goku replied with a sigh of his own. _If he's still alive, that is,_ he added to himself, not wanting to say the words aloud. "For now, let's--"

"Goten?" Gohan murmured, feeling a power surge, both familiar and alien at the same time. Though it had been ten years since he'd last felt it, he'd never forgotten how his brother's power felt to him. Everyone had a different feel to it, and Gohan knew those of his friends and family like he knew his own.

"Where, Gohan?" Goku asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Can you tell?"

"Not yet," he answered, closing his eyes and reaching for the now faint power source. Even as he reached for it, it disappeared as if it had never been there at all. "Damn it, it's gone."

"Don't worry about it for now, Gohan," Goku advised, squeezing his shoulder. "It'll come back."

"I hope so, Dad," Gohan sighed pushing a hand through his hair again, "and not before something else happens."

"Me, too, son." Goku sat down with a heavy sigh, the feeling that whoever was on the other end of the power wouldn't be easy to defeat gripping him. If it was Goten, what was he doing and why? Was he behind the destruction of Capsule Corp and Master Roshi's island? Did he know where Piccolo was and what had happened to him? _Or did he kill Piccolo?_ Goku asked himself, closing his eyes against the pain that thought invoked. _It couldn't just be for his part in Jedin's death,_ he thought, leaning his head back against the tree, _or it could be for that single thing alone._ He sighed again, and waited for the next surge, hoping it would give them a direction to go and find answers.

_This is more fun than I've had in a while!_ Goten thought to himself with a chuckle. _Playing cat and mouse with Gohan and Dad is entertaining._ He knew he'd have to face them soon, but not yet. He wanted to have more fun first. What to do next? Imploding Capsule Corp would keep them guessing, Master Roshi's island would piss them off and Piccolo . . . well, they'd find out about him eventually.

Things would get very interesting when they did. He could always tell them himself, imagining the words and blows that would be sure to follow such an announcement. It could be fun, in it's way, but decided not to do that just yet. He chuckled and deliberately sent his power level through the roof before dropping it back down again. Knowing he'd keep doing it until he grew bored, he flew away from the pod where he'd been resting for a while, and headed for where the Tree of Might had been.

"Dam it!" Gohan swore, pacing along the edge of The Lookout. "Gone again!"

"We'll catch him eventually, Gohan," Goku said, only his eyes moving as he followed his son's frustrated form back and forth. "Sit down before you wear a track in the tile."

"How can you be so calm about this, Dad?"

"So far all we've felt are quick surges. I'd be more worried if it went high and stayed that way for more than a minute or so." Gohan sighed and stopped pacing, knowing his father was right. "Relax and save your energy. You might need it later."

"Yes, Dad." He sighed again and sat down, leaning against a tree. He had a point: after the fight with Goten and Jedin, he'd been training more. It wasn't on the same scale as when he'd fought Cell or even Buu, but it was more than he'd been doing in the years before Goten had disappeared. He knew for a fact that Vegeta was training harder than ever, not wanting to repeat his mistake with Jedin again.

"Incoming," Dende murmured, turning to face the approaching energy sources. They all knew who was coming toward them: Tien, Chiaotzu, Yamcha, Trunks, Videl, Pan, Krillin and Eighteen. Vegeta obviously didn't deign to grace them with his presence, and Piccolo . . . well, who knew?

"What in the world is going on around here?" Krillin demanded as they touched down near Goku and Gohan. "Master Roshi's is gone, and now Capsule Corp is, too!"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Trunks muttered under his breath, crossing his arms over his chest. His mother had given him more control over the company as he'd gotten older, and the loss of loyal and efficient employees, not to mention the building itself, was a blow to his businessman's ego. He'd already arranged financial compensation to the families of his employees with Bulma's help, but didn't know if would be necessary if they used the dragonballs to wish them and the building back. In either case, he was ready for whatever happened, at least as far Capsule Corp went.

"That wouldn't be the point, would it?" Tien asked, turning to him with a frown in his eyes. Trunks knew better than to answer that, so he said nothing. "Something about this doesn't sit right, guys."

"I know," Goku replied, getting to his feet with a sigh, "but we don't have anything to go on."

"We have more than you might think," Pan said quietly, bringing everyone's attention to her.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, whoever's doing this is trying to get our attention," Pan answered, "and doing it in such a way that's going to get and keep our attention for a long while."

"Mission accomplished," Krillin murmured, giving his wife an angelic smile when she gave him a gentle rap on the back of his head for interrupting.

"Master Roshi's island and Capsule Corp are just a means to an end for this guy," Pan went on, completely ignoring Krillin, "a red flag to wave in our faces."

"Why would he do that, though?" Yamcha wondered, pushing a hand through his hair.

"Revenge seems like a good motive to me," broke in a new voice, making everyone jump in surprise. They all looked up to see an armored figure descending toward them.

"Holy HFIL," Trunks breathed, wanting to rub his eyes but at the same time, he didn't want to take his eyes off the intruder. "Goten?" There was no way this scarred warrior was his friend. It just wasn't possible.

"Sure has been a while, hasn't it?"

**To Be Continued** . . .


	8. Fights and Explanations

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own it, and never will. I'm actually getting used to that. I'm not making any money off of this story either, and am used to that already. I'm just having fun with established characters, as well as ones I've created.

**AN:** In the last chapter of the story, Capsule Corp was destroyed, leaving the Z Fighters in doubt as to who would commit such a heinous act. Goku and Gohan went in search of more information, discovering that Master Roshi's island had been destroyed, and no one knew anything about what had happened to it. Meeting at The Lookout, Goku shared the news with Dende and Gohan. Sensing a malevolent power, Gohan wondered if Goten had returned to earth, but the power was gone before he could identify it. The power appeared and disappeared through the rest of the afternoon, leaving Gohan frustrated. The other fighters arrived at The Lookout, trying to understand what was going on, when Goten arrived.

Will he explain where he's been and why he's so bent on revenge? Find out in this exciting chapter! (Again, possibility of character death. I haven't decided yet.)

They all watched as Goten landed lightly on the tiles, studying him. He looked more like Goku than Gohan ever had, especially as a Super Sayan 3. Aside from the scars, they were mirror images of each other. They even sounded alike, or would have if not for the wound on Goten's throat that had both deepened and roughened his voice. Their faces, builds and movements were exactly the same, leaving no doubt as to whom the scarred fighter was. "Goten?" Gohan asked softly, not quite wanting to believe it. The scarred warrior turned to him, a slight smile on his lips.

"Hey, Gohan," he replied, inclining his head to his brother before locking gazes with Trunks. "It's been a while," he said, and something in his voice made Trunks suppress a shiver.

"That it has," Trunks answered coolly as he studied his former friend. "Where've you been?"

"Oh, I've been around." He chuckled, his voice rough. "Been around the galaxy a time or two. I've seen, fought and trained with some interesting people." He looked around, obviously not seeing whom he wanted to. "Where's Vegeta?"

"At home."

"Tell that arrogant asshole to get up here," Goten told him, his strangely colored eyes cold and hard. "I've got something to say to him." Trunks glanced at Goku.

"Go," he said with a nod. When Trunks was gone, Goku turned to Goten. "What are you up to?"

"Up to?" he asked in return, his tone implying deeply offended dignity. "Why would I be up to something?"

"You always are," Gohan replied before Goku could, "and it's usually no good."

"True enough," Goten agreed after a moment or two to think about it. He chuckled again. "Especially now. I'm _really_ up to no good this time."

"You're planning something, aren't you?"

"Always, but telling too much of any plan to one's enemies is never good."

"We're not your enemies, Goten," Krillin broke in, shoving a hand through his hair. "We're your friends, your family."

"Let's not go there just yet, Krillin," both Goku and Goten said together, sounding so alike that Gohan shivered.

"Not until the gang's all here, at least," Goten continued, shrugging one shoulder before wandering to sit in the shade and close his eyes until Vegeta arrived.

"Goten," Gohan began, but Goku put a hand on his arm and shook his head when he turned to face him.

"Not now, son," he said quietly, sadness in his eyes. "We won't get anything out of him yet." Gohan nodded with a sigh. This was going to break ChiChi's heart, even more than when Goten was just missing, and they both knew it. They would have to tell her: it wasn't going to be possible not to. She'd hear it from somewhere and it was probably better coming from them.

"Wise decision," Goten remarked, surprising them.

"We thought you were--"

"Asleep?" he scoffed, not bothering to open his eyes. "I don't sleep anymore."

"Why not?"

"Dreams," Goten replied simply and said nothing more until Vegeta arrived with Trunks in tow. "Hello again, Vegeta."

"What do you want with me, boy?" he demanded as he and Trunks landed, not seeing anyone else for the moment. "You got something to say to me?"

"Actually," he replied, getting to his feet in one smooth motion, "yes. It's something I didn't get the chance to say ten years ago."

"Out with it, boy!" Vegeta growled when he said nothing more, pausing as if to gather his thoughts. "We haven't got all day!"

"Well, one of us does," Goten said, opening his eyes and pinning Vegeta in place with his unusually colored gaze. "Oh, yes, I remember now." Vegeta had forgotten how fast the kid could move: before he could think to evade the blow or even blink, he was flying back, pain exploding in his gut. He was almost to edge of The Lookout before he managed to stop himself. "Kiss my ass, Vegeta."

"You all right, Vegeta?" Goku called over his shoulder without taking his eyes off Goten.

"Fine," he growled back, bend nearly double and hugging his middle against the pain. "That little shit hits like a girl."

"So why are you all hunched over like a feeble old man, Vegeta?" Goten taunted, deliberately trying to make him angry. "Are you _sure_ it's only been ten years since we last fought? Here I'll even power down for you." He powered down to normal, looking more like Goku than he did before, down to the hairstyle. "Come on and get me, Vegeta."

"That's it!" Vegeta attacked, fists and feet, knees and elbows flying as he tried to land a blow.

"Stop trying to hit me and hit me!"

"Shut up, boy!"

"Make me, Shorty," Goten shot back, ducking under a kick. He blocked and caught the next one, spinning Vegeta into a tree. "Not that this isn't fun," he said as Vegeta lay stunned almost at his feet, "but I'm assuming that you guys have questions and this isn't getting them answered at all." He looked down at the dazed Sayan Prince. "Time out, Vegeta." He looked around at the others. "Fire away."

"Did you destroy Capsule Corp?" Trunks demanded, the first to gather his scattered wits.

"Yes."

"Why?" Tien asked, glaring at him.

"To get your attention."

"The other buildings?" Krillin wondered, not sure he wanted to hear the answer.

"Fun."

"Master Roshi's Island?" It was Yamcha's turn now, and he asked the question through grit teeth.

"I was aiming for him," Goten answered, glancing at Goku. "I missed."

"And Piccolo?" Goku glared at him, this warrior that both was and wasn't his son.

"Well, let's say that he won't be coming back without the dragonballs," he replied with a shrug.

"How could you, Goten?" Gohan demanded, shoving a hand through his hair. "Why?"

"Because he killed my best friend," Goten said evenly, no trace of regret in his eyes or voice, "and he was important to you."

"Have you lost your mind?"

"No, simply realigned my priorities." He shrugged again and gave Vegeta a nudge with his boot. "Wake up, Vegeta. Now's _not_ the time for a nap."

"Is this revenge on _me,_ Goten?" Gohan asked, his hands clenched at his sides. He was visibly vibrating with anger, grief and shock. "If it is, we'll fight it out, just you and me."

"You think entirely too much of yourself, Gohan," he replied, shaking his head. "This a fight for the fate of the earth, and as such, involves everyone. Part of it is revenge, you're right about that, but mostly, I just want to blow up the earth. I can't do that without at least fighting all of you." He shrugged again. "It's only fair."

"You've got to be kidding me," Chiaotzu muttered to himself, but Goten heard anyway.

"Not at all. If I just started taking over, like say, the androids- no offense, Eighteen."

"None taken," she replied, her voice as always quiet and calm, but they all heard the steel under it.

"You all would have to try to stop me. I'm just giving you advanced warning."

"How advanced?"

"A year from today. Train how you wish and where you wish, just be ready in a year."

"Where?"

"I'll let you know." With that, he disappeared, obviously having picked up Instant Transmission somewhere in the last ten years.

"Damn it!" Gohan swore at the top of his lungs, his power level going through the roof.

"Power down, Gohan!" Goku shouted, feeling his son's power vibrate through his own body like he'd grabbed a live high voltage wire. It danced down his nerves, tightening his muscles as if in preparation for a fight. His own power level went up in response, an instinctive reaction he couldn't control. "Damn it, son, power down!" He looked around the others quickly, not wanting to take his eyes of Gohan for long. "Get out of here. Now!"

"Goku--"

"Get moving!" he ordered, his eyes flashing green for a second. "It's between him and me now. Go!" With one last look, the others left, carrying the still unconscious Vegeta with them. "Gohan, power down!"

"He's my brother!"

"He's my son, too, Gohan!" he shot back, blocking the punch that followed Gohan's words. Like Goten when he fought against Jedin all those years ago, he made no move except to defend himself. "We can't help him now. It has to wait."

"I'm done waiting!" He began a flurry of moves Goku almost couldn't keep up with, and was sure he wouldn't be able to if Gohan's power kept going up. "Ten _years_ an not one word, not even knowing if he was dead or alive, and now _this_!" In his rage and grief, he completely skipped Super Sayan and level two, going straight to level three. He went through the change faster than Goku ever had, even after years of practice in Otherworld. Instead of attacking, Gohan dropped to his knees, staring at the tiles with silent tears running down his face. "He's evil now, more so than anyone we've fought before, and he knows our moves, our weaknesses. We don't know his, not like we used to, if he even still has them."

"We'll get through this, son," Goku said, crouching in front of him, "like we always do."

"How's that?"

"With training, a little faith--"

"And lots of luck," Gohan finished with him, having heard it a thousand times. He chuckled a little, finally powering down. "All right. I guess after all this time, one year won't make much of a difference."

"That's the spirit."

"I'm hungry." Goku laughed.

"Yeah, going Super Sayan Three really takes it out of you." He got to his feet and helped Gohan to his. "Let's go eat." They started inside, following the others and the smell of cooking food, when Gohan stopped and faced his father.

"Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm not telling Mom about this," he stated, refusing to budge on this. Goku sighed, pushing a hand through his hair.

"I'm not asking you to, Gohan," he replied with another sigh. "I'll take care of it."

"That was fun!" Goten chuckled to himself, landing beside his pod just as the sun was setting. He'd felt Gohan's power level go up, and Goku's as well, before both had leveled off. "I got to kick Vegeta's ass for a minute, and issued my challenge. This is going to be so much fun!" He thought of something and laughed at himself this time. "Even if I've gone over to the Dark Side, it _was_ damn good to see everyone again." It was going to be an interesting wait, feeling power levels surge and drop, but it sure as hell wasn't going to be boring.

Even if he wanted to be there when Gohan and Goku told ChiChi of his betrayal, he knew it wasn't a good idea to by anywhere in the area when they did. When her dander was up, the looks she sent at the object of her temper and even innocent bystanders could draw blood or even make a Sayan shake in their boots, Goku included. Vegeta alone seemed immune, but Goten had learned long ago that there was more to the Sayan Prince than met the eye. He would train, too, to stop Goten, but the scarred young man knew it wasn't only for his pride, which had taken a major blow that afternoon. Vegeta would likely train harder and longer than anyone else, so he'd have to keep an eye on him. Goku, too. _Just to see what those old coots are up to,_ he told himself as he settled in the pod.

A year from today, he'd either be ruling the earth or he'd be dead. Either way, he'd be finished with this little blue ball in a backwater part of the galaxy.

**One Month Later:**

Goku leaned against a tree, arms crossed over his chest. The dragonballs gleamed in the late afternoon sun. Memories flashed through his mind: Grandpa giving him the four star ball, meeting Bulma and the others, giving that same dragonball to Gohan, and all the adventures they'd had because of them. Friends and the enemies they'd made while searching for them, both here and on Namek went through his mind as well, as he watched Dende call the dragon.

Even though they'd all seen it before, the sight never failed to fill Goku with awe and under it, a little fear. Certain wishes were beyond his power to grant, and he'd refused other wishes before. Who was to say he would keep granting their wishes, or even come at their call. Trunks, Pan and Gohan had taken time out of their training to find them so could wish Piccolo back, but if he refused, would they be able to defeat Goten without him?

Goku shook his head, trying to rid himself of such depressing thoughts, but they persisted, giving rise to the questions he hadn't asked himself yet. One question was that if it came to him and Goten, _could_ he kill his own son? Would he hesitate, even for an instant, giving Goten the chance to kill him? He hoped not, but no one knew the answer to a question like that until the situation arose.

"Do you think Goten will show up, Dad?" Gohan asked as he joined him a safe distance from the dragonballs. Dende began the incantation to raise the dragon and Goku shrugged.

"Who knows?" he asked in reply, though he was wondering the same thing. "I'm pretty sure Vegeta is hoping he will." Gohan chuckled a little at that.

"He wants a chance to get some of his own back," Gohan answered, "because I know it's driving him crazy that Goten was able to knock him down and out so fast."

"To tell you the truth, it's doing the same to me," Goku admitted, making Gohan gape at him as the sky turned black and clouds appeared from nowhere. Golden lightning flared, arcing from cloud to cloud. High above, unseen by those watching, the lightning took the shape of Shenlong, guardian dragon of earth. Gohan was still staring at him in speechless shock as the dragon's head emerged from the clouds.

"Who has summoned me from my slumber?" the dragon growled, as always sounding annoyed at being woken up. Goku straightened off the tree and gestured for Gohan to do the honors of wishing Piccolo back. Just as he stepped forward to do so, Goten appeared in front of Dende.

"Goten, no!" Goku's harsh shout of warning was ignored and came too late for Dende.

"This time," he said, resting a hand on Dende's chest and sending an energy blast through him, "you're going to _stay_ dead!" He disappeared again before Dende's body slumped to the tiles. The dragonballs turned to stone and the dragon vanished without a word.

"No!" Krillin cried, dropping to his knees.

"Without Dende," Trunks began but couldn't finish the thought.

"There's no dragonballs," Vegeta said, crossing his arms over his chest, "and no wishes. If we die this time, we stay dead." It was a good move, Vegeta admitted, and one he would have used himself all those years ago if he'd been aware of the dragonballs.

"Unless we get a new guardian," Gohan argued quietly, looking at Goku who shook his head.

"He'd just kill anyone I brought back, son," he answered, unashamed of the tears in his eyes. "It would be useless."

"Don't they have their own dragonballs?" Trunks asked, watching Mr. Popo cover Dende's body with a blanket. The small man was silently crying, his grief too deep for more.

"Not anymore," Goten answered from somewhere above them. "I took over New Namek five years ago, and told them that if they ever created more dragonballs, I'd blow up their planet. I may be a despot, but I'm an honest one." He disappeared again, leaving them all speechless behind him.

"We're screwed, aren't we?"

"Completely."

"Ho do we beat him?" Yamcha wondered, but no one answered him. There wasn't an answer yet, and wouldn't be until the year was up.

Defeating Goten was the only option they had left- the only option he'd left them- and no one was positive they'd be able to do it at all.

**To Be Continued . . . **


	9. Prologue To Battle

**Disclaimer:** Yet again, I still don't own it and am making no money off of this story. The timelines, attacks and original characters aren't mine; I'm just borrowing them to have a little fun. The other characters are mine to do with what I will, and I will continue to do so until the story is finished.

**AN:** In the last exciting chapter of the story, Goten made some startling revelations after a fast and furious fight with Vegeta. With the Sayan Prince unconscious at his feet, Goten revealed why he'd blown up Capsule Corp, Master Roshi's island and killed Piccolo. He offered the Z fighters a challenge, giving them one year to train before they faced each other again in a winner take all battle. While trying to resurrect Piccolo, Goten appeared once more and killed Dende, leaving the dragonballs useless! Will they be able to defeat Goten without Piccolo _or_ the dragonballs? Find out in this exciting chapter, and don't forget to review.

It had been a long, grueling year of training, with all the Z fighters using the Time Chamber as much as they could for extra training. The Lookout was quieter, seeming more empty and isolated with only Mr. Popo to keep an eye on things. The tiny man was quieter than normal, smiling or laughing rarely, if at all. Even Goku, one of the happiest and most optimistic one of the group, was subdued, giving Vegeta a little less to complain about.

There were only a few days left until the battle, and they still didn't know where it was going to take place. Goten had yet to tell them, and had also been very quiet after the chaos of the first couple of days. One could almost start wondering if he was still there at all, but Goku, Gohan, Vegeta and Trunks had felt his power level shoot higher than it ever had before, leaving no doubt he was still on earth, but they stilled had no clue where he was. He was still playing hide and seek with them, always disappearing before they could even get close to wherever it was he was hiding. Like them, Goten was training, either to maintain his current level or he was working on something new. _What was he up to?_ they all wondered when they had a moment to do so. _Where does he go and do all day?_

Goten appeared as Krillin and Eighteen broke for lunch. One moment they were alone, the next they weren't. He only stood looking at them as they instinctively dropped into fighting stances. "Hey, Krillin," he said with a small smile, "Eighteen."

"Goten," Krillin replied, his voice a tight growl. "What are you doing here?"

"Just came by to tell you where the fight's going to be," he answered with a casual shrug, "that's all."

"Where?"

"The old Cell Arena." He paused as if thinking. "High noon sounds a little melodramatic, doesn't it?" He shrugged again. "We'll go with it, though. Meet me there, five days from now, at noon."

"We'll tell the others," Eighteen said with a nod, "and be there."

"See you guys later," he replied with another smile and disappeared again. Krillin sagged with the release of tension and relief that he didn't have to fight Goten just yet.

"Whew! That could have been bad."

"Could have been," Eighteen agreed, "but wasn't." She smiled at him. "You handled it well."

"I was shaking in my boots."

"It didn't show." She kissed his cheek, making him blush to the roots of his hair. "You've grown. I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, sweetheart."

After telling Krillin where the battle was going to be, Goten went back to the rebuilt Cell Arena to add a few last minute touches. Everything had to be perfect for what was going to be an awesome battle that would decide the fate of the world. He'd already gone to several worlds to either brush up on his techniques or check with the seven he'd enslaved in the last ten years.

Of all the worlds he'd traveled to, fourteen had been ended by his hands, and of the seven he'd taken over, he coveted two the most: New Namek and one other no one knew the name of, not even its inhabitants. He'd been stunned to find it and had quickly taken it for his own almost seven years ago. Those two worlds bore close watching over, and he never went more than six months without checking on them.

Turning his mind to the upcoming battle, he could imagine the conversation going on at The Lookout at the moment. He had no way of knowing it, but he was absolutely right.

"The old Cell Arena?" Gohan asked after Krillin and Eighteen finished telling them of Goten's visit.

"Wasn't a town built there," Yamcha wondered, thinking back, "something like six years ago?"

"I think we can safely assume it's not there anymore," Vegeta said curtly, leaning against a tree. He glared at Goku. "This son of yours has a lot of blood on his hands."

"So do you, Vegeta," Goku fired back, clenching his fists. "If we survive this, we'll go a round or two, but we haven't got the time just now."

"If it has to be in Otherworld," Vegeta growled, "so be it."

"Fine."

"With that out of the way," Gohan interrupted, stepping between them so they wouldn't come to blows too quickly, "what are we going to do about Goten?"

"Fight him," Eighteen replied with a shrug. "What else?"

"Can we win against him, though?" Yamcha asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Doesn't look like it," Tien answered with a shake of his head.

"What's wrong with you guys?" Krillin demanded, glaring at them. "You might as well not fight at all with that attitude!" He included Goku and Vegeta in his ire. "Can you two put away that insane- not to mention _annoying_- rivalry for a few days? It's not getting us anywhere!"

"He's right," Chiaotzu said quietly, looking up at everyone. "Fighting ourselves is useless and wastes energy we could be using elsewhere."

"The little one has a point," Mr. Popo broke in, appearing as he usually did: without a sound. "All this fighting isn't getting us anywhere. Goten has left us with only two options: live under his rule or die by his hands as Mr. Piccolo and Mr. Dende did." Unable to think of a reply to that, they all fell silent for a few moments, mulling over the impact of both Goten's actions and their own.

"So we fight?"

"Win or lose," Goku agreed with a firm nod, "we fight to the last man."

"All or nothing, Vegeta replied with a slight scoff, "as usual."

_One by one, the others fell: Krillin, Eighteen, Videl, Pan, Trunks, Bulma, Vegeta and even Gohan. Goku was left to face Goten alone. The fight seemed to last forever with one unable to defeat the other. They were too evenly matched, much like Goku and Vegeta._

_The force of the blows they exchanged shook the very foundations of the earth, bringing buildings down and shattering windows in others. Towns, cities and forests disappeared as they sent energy blasts back and forth between them, causing more damage than Goten could alone, even with his powers._

_Moving too fast for human eyes, Goten knocked Goku to the ground, gathering a massive amount of energy before he landed. He threw it and when the smoke cleared, only an empty crater remained._

ChiChi snapped awake, her chest tight and tears streaming down her face. Two days were left until the battle with Goten, and the dream itself was easy to interpret. She was afraid that Goten would win the fight and take over the Earth, killing everyone she loved to do it. She turned to Goku, who slept blissfully unaware beside her. They'd had many good years together, and he'd given her the two brightest points in her life. Even though he'd been gone to Otherworld or on another planet, she had always loved the big goofball. Despite the fact that Goten had turned evil, she still loved him, too.

She slid out of bed and wandered to the window, looking out at the star lit night. It was quiet, the only sounds coming from night animals and birds. She thought of the battle to come and wondered if she'd see any of her friends and family again. It was quite possible, even likely, that it would happen just as it had in her dream. She'd be left alone, more alone than she'd ever been in her life. "ChiChi?" Goku called quietly, interrupting her dark thoughts. "What is it?"

"It's nothing, Goku," she replied, turning back to the bed with a gentle smile. He must've seen something of her thoughts in her eyes because he sat up and shook his head.

"What happened?"

"It's nothing, really." She sat next to him and sighed. "Just a nightmare."

"Tell me about it, ChiChi. You might feel better." She sighed again and told him everything she could remember about it. "Do you think we won't win?" he asked when she was finished.

"I want to say no," she replied, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder, "but something tells me that it won't be easy, or that you'll destroy each other and the world with you."

"When has fighting been easy?"

"Never," she admitted reluctantly, "but without Dende, I could lose all of you for good this time."

"It's not going to be easy to fight knowing there might not be a way back for us this time." He pushed a hand through his hair and heaved a sigh of his own. "You know that I love you, right?"

"Of course."

"Being away in Otherworld all that time didn't change how I feel for you, Gohan or Goten. None of you were ever far from my thoughts, but my only regret was not getting home sooner."

"It might have happened anyway, Goku. We'll never really know one way or the other."

"Well, we'll find out soon enough if we win or not. Let's go back to bed, ChiChi."

"I like that idea," she said, a gleam in her eye and a wicked smile on her lips, "but neither of us is going to sleep."

"Even better."

The next day flew by, with everyone squeezing training into every spare minute they could, stopping only to eat or ease cramped and sore muscles. The sun went down but no one noticed. They were all determined not to lose their lives tomorrow, but knew that some, if not all of them, might not see sunset the next day. What happened tomorrow would happen and all they could do was be as prepared as possible for it.

**AN:** Shorter chapter than usual, I know, but it seemed like a good place to stop until the next one. Let me know what you think, folks. Flames are for toasting marshmallows, but I will take constructive criticism.


	10. The Battle Begins!

**Disclaimer:** We all know the drill, we all hate it, so why do I have to keep typing this out? Oh, yeah, 'cause I'm still writing. Duh.

**AN:** In the last exciting chapter of this story, the year of training finally ended, and now only hours remain until the battle that will decide the fate of the Earth. The Z fighters stand ready to defend the Earth against former friend and comrade, Goten, who returned after wandering the farthest reaches of outer space to exact his revenge on the place he once called home. With both Piccolo and Dende dead, will they be able to defeat him or will evil rule the world? Find out in this thrilling chapter, and don't forget to review.

Just a quick apology here for how long it took to update. Other things interfered, but I've finally managed to carve out time to write on all of my stories, not just this one. Gomen. Also, just a quick warning: there will be _lots_ of character death in this one, and whether they get wished back later is up to the readers, so let me know what you want to see happen, and I _will_ be counting votes. Majority rules.

**Two Hours Remaining:**

ChiChi watched Goku, Gohan, Videl, and Pan all argue good-naturedly about who would fight first. Krillin and Eighteen had sent Marron to wait with her for the outcome of the battle, for good or ill, and Bra would be coming to join them soon. They all knew that some of them wouldn't come home from this fight, probably never to return again. Goten had killed Dende and taken over New Namek, destroying the only option they had of coming back. Parts of her dream from two nights ago resurfaced in her mind, only to be pushed back. She wouldn't dwell on it, and refused to send her family off with fear in her eyes.

"We need to go," Gohan said quietly, looking up at the sky. It was like a bowl turned upside down, with no clouds to mar the perfection of the bright blue. He wrapped his arms around his mother, knowing it could be the last time, and buried his face in her neck for a moment. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you, Gohan," she replied, squeezing him tightly. He pulled away to look down at her, seeing concern and determination in her eyes. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Be safe, son." She walked into Goku's arms when he opened them, burrowing into his chest when he closed them tightly around her. "You just came back to me, Goku. I don't want to have to go to Otherworld to get you back."

"I'll do my best, dear," he answered with a slight chuckle. "I know how hard this is for you."

"Go, Goku," she said, giving him a little push toward the others, waiting patiently for him. "The sooner you leave, the sooner this will all be over . . . one way or another."

"I love you, ChiChi," he whispered, bending to kiss her warmly, "and always will. Never doubt that."

"Not once," she told him, her eyes burning with tears she refused to shed, "and not now." He hugged her to him for another moment before releasing her to join the others. "Fight well, everyone."

"Let's go." They all took off at the same time, waving back at her and Marron until they were lost from sight.

**One Hour Remaining:**

"I'm going and that's final," Bulma told Vegeta, her tone allowing for no arguments from either her son or her husband. Trunks knew better than to argue, but even after all these years of being married to Bulma, Vegeta still thought she would obey him.

"Damn it, woman!" he shouted, shoving a hand through his hair in an extremely rare show of frustration. "We don't have time for this!"

"Exactly," she replied evenly, one eyebrow lifting at his irritated growl. "So why waste time arguing? I'm going with you, whether you like it or not, My Prince." Trunks turned away to hide a grin. His mother only called Vegeta her Prince when he was skating on very thin ice, and his father looked like he was going to sink so fast that no one would realize he was gone until it was too late.

"Fine!" Vegeta grumbled, giving in at last. "I warn you, woman, if you're not ready to leave now, we're leaving you behind." He shot Trunks a look that warned him to wipe the grin off his face before he did it for him. Obediently, Trunks did so, making sure his stony mask was well in place before turning back to his mother. He knew there was laughter in his eyes when he saw her lips twitch. Bulma won far more arguments than Vegeta knew, mostly because she was as stubborn as the Sayan Prince, sometimes more so, and wasn't afraid to stand up to him.

"I'm off to ChiChi's," Bra said as she stepped into the kitchen, pressing a kiss to Bulma's cheek and one on Trunks' chin before coming to stand in front of her father. "Fight well, Father." Vegeta surprised everyone, himself included, when he drew her into his arms.

"Stay safe," he replied, brushing her cheek with his lips before he pulled away. Gathering Trunks and Bulma with a look, he left the house without a backward glance, taking Bulma into his arms before launching himself into the air. Trunks followed a moment later, flying as fast as possible for the battleground. They were almost there, catching sight of Goku, Gohan, Pan and Videl coming from the other direction when they all felt the sudden spike of Goten's power.

"What the--" Gohan wondered, coming to a full stop in midair.

"The Lookout," Trunks said, changing direction without further comment, leaving his comrades to bring up the rear.

Krillin, Eighteen, Yamcha, Tien and Chiaotzu all flew as fast as they could for the Lookout, knowing Goten was there, doing what they didn't yet know. They felt the others approaching quickly, but they knew that they would arrive in time to see the aftermath, unable to stop Goten's latest attack on their morale. It was probably exactly what he was after, but that seemed to be lost as they all rushed to reach the Lookout in time.

The Z Fighters arrived within moments of each other, all of them staring in speechless shock as the Lookout burned out of control. More smoke rose from Korin's home, leaving no doubt in anyone's mind Goten's reason for being there: senzu beans. The God Water _was_ another option, but they all dismissed it. Despite what it could do for a fighter, it was also a powerful poison with the potential to kill whoever tasted even a drop of it. Goten wouldn't take that risk with how close they were to the final showdown. Either way, he either had the senzu beans on him or had destroyed them when he'd destroyed Korin's Tower, snatching them from under the Z fighters' noses before they had a chance to get them.

"He's got a _lot_ to answer for," Trunks growled, watching parts of the Lookout collapse in on itself, leaving only charred bricks and trees. "I've had enough of this."

"So let's go kick some ass," Krillin replied, speeding off back the way they'd come, Eighteen, Trunks and Vegeta right behind him. Tien, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu were only a heartbeat behind them, with Goku, Gohan, Videl and Pan following them.

_There's no other option now,_ they all thought to themselves as they flew. Their hearts twisted as they thought of what they'd have to do to a former friend and ally. _We have to destroy him if we ever want to stop him. There's no other hope for it._

**30 Minutes Remaining:**

"Hmm, I see they're early," Goten said quietly, more to himself than to the camera crews standing just behind him. He sat waiting for the others to arrive one side of the Arena, the reporters and their camera crews behind him so he could view the entire fighting area without having to look around anyone. "I can only assume they know what happened to the Lookout and to Korin's Tower." He laughed, smug and evil, though his eyes remained cold and hard.

"How do you know that they're coming?" one of the reporters stationed behind him wondered, looking up at the empty sky. "I can't see anyone."

"You will," he replied, crossing his arms over his chest, "in a minute or two." He shrugged one shoulder indifferently. "I can feel them, and they're mad as a whole nest of hornets." As predicted, two minutes later, the Z Fighters descended from the sky to land in a semi-circle in front of him.

"How could you, Goten?" Krillin demanded, not seeing the camera crews in his anger. "They were completely defenseless--"

"Oh, calm down, Krillin," Goten snapped, the hard authority in his voice stopping Krillin mid-tirade. "They're fine, for the moment, and are over there." He waved with one hand toward one of the few walls he had left standing from the city that had been built there years before. Korin, Mr. Popo and Yajirobe were all suspended somehow from it, and as Goten had said, unharmed for the time being.

"What about the people who lived here, Goten?" Trunks asked, unconsciously mirroring Vegeta's pose: arms crossed, relaxed and ready for whatever Goten might throw their way. "How many were there?"

"Five thousand," he answered absently, "or close to it. Those that didn't die right away when I attacked have long since sought refuge in other cities." He paused as if thinking back on the night he'd attacked. "Around one thousand escaped."

"Why, Goten?" This question from Gohan, who looked around the rebuilt Arena, realizing that it had been built from the rubble of the once bustling town.

"I'm evil these days," he said, again shrugging one shoulder, "or did you forget that? I've gone over to the Dark Side, and haven't regretted it for a moment." He stood slowly, and glared at them. "Now, did you guys come here to fight or did you come here to lay a pitiful guilt-trip at my feet, hoping to prick my conscience into saying I'm sorry?" He shook his head. "It won't work. I'm not, for anything I've done, either here or when I was wandering the universe." He looked at all of them, raking them with his unusual eyes, and they were cold, hard, and empty, before he turned his back on them. "You can either attack me together or one at a time. It's up to you. You have twenty minutes to decide."

"Why twenty minutes?" another reporter asked, drawing Goten's gaze for a moment.

"The battle doesn't start until noon," he answered, "and I refuse to start it even one minute early."

"Why?"

"Do you want to die now?" Goten asked, lifting an eyebrow in annoyance. The reporter gulped audibly and shook his head. "Then shut up." He sat down again, listening with half an ear to the argument that was being held across the arena from him. He'd heard it before, countless times, and he only followed it now to know when it was over. As usual, Krillin and Yamcha were loudest in their protests, with Gohan, Videl and Pan coming in a close second. Vegeta, Trunks, Eighteen and, surprisingly, Chiaotzu were quiet, speaking little but to great effect. Goku, also entirely unexpectedly, said nothing at all, just gazing off into the distance as if he could learn the outcome of the battle there. Goten chuckled to himself: certain things always had to be said and done before each battle, and while they changed with the opponent, the argument remained largely the same.

Predictably, with two minutes to spare, the argument broke up as everyone left the arena, only Goten remaining inside, for all the world looking like he was asleep. The only sound now was the wind blowing gently across the land, whispering through what grass and trees were left around the arena. The reporters backed away to what they hoped was a safe distance from the arena, cameras running. By Trunks's watch, there was only fifteen seconds left when Goten stood again, turning his unusual gaze to them. _Three . . . two . . . one,_ Trunks counted silently to himself. "Let the battle begin," Goten said quietly, looking almost bored with the whole thing he'd gone through so much trouble to set up. Krillin sprang into the ring first, and though he was nervous, her was determined to put up a good fight.

"You're going down, Goten!" Krillin cried as he began his attack. Goten lifted one hand and sent a beam of energy straight through Krillin's heart. He dropped to his knees before falling face-first into the tiles where he lay unmoving.

"You didn't think it would be _that_ easy, did you?" Goten asked, looking up at the others as they stared in speechless shock at how quickly and easily he'd killed Krillin. Goten sighed in resignation and snapped his fingers. Frieza and King Kold replicas appeared, lining the outside edge of the arena. "I found and took over Frieza's home planet. His people are now my personal bodyguards."

"You get them to do your dirty work, do you?" Gohan demanded, visibly restraining himself from entering the ring to retrieve Krillin's body. He knew it would be considered an attack, so he held his place beside his father, inwardly seething all the while.

"Actually, no," Goten replied with a small smile. "I still do my own dirty work. They're just here to make sure the rules of this tournament are upheld."

"The rules?"

"Yes, rules. One, anyone who steps into the ring after the battle begins becomes an opponent, no exceptions. Two, if you fall out of the ring, lose consciousness or die, then the fight is over. In the case of unconsciousness, once the person wakes up, they may finish the fight, unless someone else is in the ring." One shoulder lifted then fell in a shrug. "Simple and straightforward. Use any attack or techniques you want, and I'll try not to embarrass you."

"You're a cocky little bastard," Eighteen stated, jumping into the ring, "but you're going to pay for that!" She rushed at him, scooping Krillin's body up in one hand and tossing him to the others along the way. Trunks caught him and laid his fallen friend gently on the ground as Eighteen was launched back, almost out of the ring, when Goten landed a vicious blow to her abdomen.

"Care to try again," he taunted, one eyebrow shooting up mockingly, "or would you rather fall out the ring? At least if you do, you'll live a little longer." Eighteen growled low in her throat and launched herself at him again. Fists, feet, knees and elbows flew, moving with blurred speed as Eighteen strove to land a blow. The others could tell Goten was playing with her, catching or dodging her blows completely, letting her in close before driving her back with effortless precision.

Enraged, she broke free of the fight, leaping back to study him. She was breathing hard, but he was still as calm as he'd been before the fight had begun. Blood trickled from her nose and bruises stood out on her pale skin, more showing through the rips and tears in her clothes. Her right arm hung limp at her side, almost completely useless, and her legs shook as she struggled to remain upright. So far, she hadn't managed to land a single blow, while he had landed too many for her to count. "Is that the best you can do?"

"I've only just started, Goten," she answered, a small smile on her lips as she threw herself into the fight once more. Finally, she slipped a blow past his guard and scored a glancing blow on his jaw when she felt his hand on her chest.

"I admire your spirit," he said quietly, his words just for her, "but this is good-bye." She stared into his strange eyes, her own widening in surprise when he sent an energy blast straight through her. The force of the blast sent her sailing out of the ring, dead before Yamcha caught her. "Next," he called as she was set down beside her husband.

_How do we beat him?_ Gohan wondered as Tien jumped into the ring, dropping immediately into a defensive crouch. _He killed both Krillin and Eighteen as if they were amateurs. Piccolo, one of the strongest fighters I've known other than my dad and Vegeta, fell at my brother's hands. Dende's gone, so if we die this time, we won't be coming back._ He turned to look at Pan and Videl, the two most important people in his life other than his parents, and knew there was nothing he could do to get them to stay safe. _No where is safe anymore,_ he reminded himself with an internal growl. _Goten, my brother, you will pay for what you've done, both here and on other worlds, even if it costs me life again._

Tien fell a few minutes later, scoring several hits before he fell, Chiaotzu following after an even shorter fight. Goten looked like he could fight all day and not tire when Yamcha jumped into the ring, attacking as soon as his feet hit the tile. Rushing forward, hands poised to strike, Yamcha waited until the last possible moment to jump up and over Goten's head, landing behind him. Goten spun just as quickly, sent Yamcha flying with a perfect uppercut, disappeared from the ring only to reappear above his opponent and send him crashing back to earth with an elbow to his back.

Even as high up as the combatants had been, those below heard the audible crack of Yamcha's spine. They all watched in speechless shock and horror as Yamcha came down outside of the ring, the force of his landing creating a crater at least twenty feet deep and half again as wide. Pan and Gohan went to their fallen comrade as Goten returned to the arena, watching his brother and niece go to Yamcha's aid. Close to five minutes later, they carried Yamcha from the crater, leaning him against a tree in the shade. Pan remained by his side as Gohan strode back to the remaining fighters to pass news of his condition. It was highly probable that he would never walk again, let alone fight.

"Next," Goten called again, motioning for someone to join him in the ring. He'd given them enough time to take care of the injured Yamcha and was waiting for his next opponent. "You could always surrender now, you know. I might spare the Earth if you do."

"Fat chance of that," Gohan replied with a grunt. "You would blow up the Earth if the opportunity presented itself."

"It has, several times in the last year," he reminded his brother. "I didn't, though."

"Why not?"

"Let's put it down to curiosity," Goten answered with an indifferent shrug. "I wanted to see if you could beat me, and I couldn't do that if I'd blown up the planet, could I?" He looked up at the clear sky for a moment. "Not only that, but I honestly thought that with the dragonballs gone, and no hope for a new guardian, you all would fight harder to save your lives and those of the Earth." Pinning them with a glare, he smiled and went on, "I haven't seen any evidence of any kind that the loss of the dragonballs has affected you at all."

"Why you little--" Vegeta sputtered, and started forward to step into the ring. Only Goku's hand on his shoulder kept him where he was. He almost shook him off, but looked over his shoulder as Goku shook his head.

"He's just trying to bait you into doing something stupid, Vegeta," Goku told him quietly, the words meant for him alone. "Don't fall for it."

"Well, who's next? I'm not going to wait all day."

**To Be Continued . . . **


	11. The Battle Continues

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Dragonball Z. I'm not making any money off of this story, I'm just having fun with established characters and those of my own creation. That said, let's get on with the story, shall we?

**AN:** Cast your votes soon, folks, because the final showdown is coming up, and be sure to tell me what you want to see happen. Every vote counts!

* * *

"Well?" Goten called, beckoning to the others outside the ring. "I'm not going to wait all day!" Trunks, at the end of his patience for his former friend, leaped into the ring. "Not who I expected, but in the interest of fair play, I'll oblige."

"Fair play?" Trunks demanded, his voice harsh, as he stood ready for battle. "Is that what you call breaking Yamcha's back so he can't fight?" He laughed humorlessly. "That was low, even for you, Goten."

"Is this another one of those pathetic guilt trips, Trunks?" Goten asked, one eyebrow lifting as he studied Trunks. He had used the year of training well, as had the others, but it showed more in Trunks than it did everyone else. He had become leaner, and while he wasn't as muscular as Goten, he was just as strong. "I told you once before that they won't work on me. I don't have a conscience anymore." Trunks growled and attacked, his anger giving him an edge, but he was eventually driven back, almost out of the ring, by Goten's cold logic. He could tell that Goten was just toying with him as he had done with Eighteen: letting him come close before driving him back. Though his fighting style was still mostly the same, Goten had learned new techniques and applied them, never letting Trunks in too close or letting him get too far away.

Breaking free of Goten's attack, Trunks glared at him, trying to work out how to get past his guard long enough to land a few blows. "There's something I don't understand, Goten," he said, hoping to land a verbal blow if he couldn't land a physical one.

"There are a _lot_ of things you don't understand, Trunks," Goten replied, shrugging one shoulder, "but ask away."

"Why did you kill Piccolo?" he wondered, a small smile curving his lips. "Was it because you knew you couldn't defeat him in a fair fight?"

"Not at all," Goten answered, moving faster than Trunks could follow and sending him flying with an uppercut. "I killed Piccolo," he went on, appearing behind Trunks as he flew into the air, "because he killed my best friend!" He brought both fists down on the back of Trunks' head, sending him plummeting to back to the ground, unconscious. Trunks landed outside the ring, in the same crater that Yamcha had made when _he_ hit the ground. Touching back down on the tile, Goten looked at everyone else. "For future reference, the next person who tries to guilt trip me will be _instantly_ killed, _no exceptions._"

"That's it!" Vegeta exploded, whirling on Goku. "You've held me back long enough, Kakarot! I know he's your son, but he has to die!" Gohan winced, but Goku just nodded once and let go of Vegeta's shoulder. He leaped into the ring and attacked as soon as his feet hit the tile. "You're mine, Goten!"

"Well, bring it on, little man," Goten replied with a laugh. "Let's see what you've got!" He was prepared for the attack, and though it was powerful, he held his position in the center of the ring. _Seeing his son fall so easily has obviously pissed Vegeta off,_ Goten thought to himself, one eyebrow lifting in amusement as he blocked a right hook that, had it landed, might have taken his head off.

"Your friend might have gained a slight advantage over me, Goten," Vegeta growled as he continued to rain blows on Goten, "but you won't."

"Given time, Vegeta," he retorted, his lips curving, "he _would_ have beaten you. The artificial moon was a low down, dirty trick, and wasn't what I expected of the Prince of Sayans."

"Ha! I've never stooped as low as you have, Goten!" Frustrated by the fact that he couldn't land a single punch or kick, Vegeta's power level was slowly rising, something that everyone noticed except him. Goten humphed, ducked under the next punch and delivered a blow to Vegeta's abdomen that knocked him up and into the sky. Appearing above him, Goten caught one of his arms, using Vegeta's momentum to flip him over his head and sent him crashing back to earth . . . inside the ring. It was clear that he was by no means finished toying with the Sayan Prince. Humiliation was the order of the day with Goten, and he would strike at Vegeta's pride without regret.

Getting slowly, painfully, to his feet, Vegeta glared at Goten as he hovered above the Arena. "Is that all you've got?" Goten taunted, knowing it would make Vegeta's blood boil. "If it is, I'll let you leave the ring alive." With a deep growl, Vegeta transformed to a Super Sayan and blasted off the tile to meet Goten in the air. "Much better, Vegeta!"

"Shut up, kid!" Vegeta roared, ducking under a kick and finally landing a blow to Goten's stomach. He doubled over, the breath knocked out of him, but as Vegeta lifted his hands to deliver another blow to his back that would send him down to the tile, Goten grabbed his ankle and flipped him again. Keeping a good grip on his opponent, he spun him, faster and faster until they were a blur of color above the Arena, and then suddenly let go. Vegeta flew, too dizzy to stop his momentum, when he was rudely stopped by Goten catching hold of his collar and tossing him back the other way.

"I can keep this up all day, Vegeta!" Goten called as he flew after him. "It's kind of like playing catch by myself!"

"Then catch this!" he shouted, forming and tossing a ball of energy right at Goten's head as he flew toward him. Batting it away as if it was no more bothersome than a fly, Goten kept coming. Vegeta surprised him, though, by not being where he'd expected him to be. "Up here, _kid_!" Goten looked up and smirked when he saw Vegeta bearing down on him from above, a ball of energy in his hands. He let Vegeta hit him with it, allowing himself to land on his back inside the ring. It hurt, but a great deal less than Vegeta planned it to.

"I'm shaking in my boots now, Vegeta," he said with a weak laugh, wanting Vegeta to believe he'd had the wind knocked out of him again by the force of his impact with the tile. "I think you actually managed to scratch my armor with that one."

"You can come to me, kid," Vegeta growled, fast losing what remained of his patience, "or I can come down to you. Make your choice." Goten got slowly to his feet, faking a pain he only partially felt.

"I pick up," he replied, and shot into the air. He closed the distance between them quickly and started raining blows on Vegeta, moving too fast for those on the ground to see. Battered and bloody, Vegeta dropped inside the ring again, driven there by a blow from Goten. "You're making this too easy, Vegeta!"

"Enough of this," Vegeta growled to himself, shooting from the ground into the air so fast that Goten blinked, the instant's hesitation giving Vegeta just the opening he needed. He attacked, keeping the blows coming, finally driving Goten to the ground with a double-handed blow to the back of his head. As Goten lay stunned inside the arena below, Vegeta prepared to use his most powerful attack. "Meteor Flash!" He sent volley after volley of energy at Goten, knowing this was probably his last chance to stop him. He was so focused on keeping it up that at first he didn't see the surge coming toward him. Vegeta felt his target getting closer and closer to him, and looked up just in time to see Goten come out of his attack like it wasn't even there. The volley stopped as Vegeta stared at Goten in shock.

"You slap like a cheerleader, Vegeta," Goten informed him with a sneer before repaying him for every blow he'd landed twice over. He sent him barreling to the ground, unconscious before he hit, landing with a bone-jarring thud outside the ring . . . just as Trunks woke up. Seeing his father driven deep into the ground, again, sent Trunks over the edge. He transformed into an ascended Sayan and attacked, his power level rising quickly with every blocked punch or ducked kick. Goten laughed, easily holding him at bay once more. "Now _this_ is a fight!"

"Shut up, Goten!" Trunks roared, keeping the blows coming as fast as he could, one punch finding its way inside Goten's defenses and landing in his stomach. From there, it was easier to land blows on Goten, but it cost Trunks a few bruises and broken or cracked bones of his own. To those watching below, they were no more than a blur of color and motion for a few moments before even that much faded and they were left with no real way to see which way the fight was going. The force of the blows they landed on each other shook the air, and brief energy attacks lit the sky. Suddenly, Trunks came plummeting out of the sky, stunned from Goten's latest blow, but only inches before he hit the tile, he reversed his fall and renewed his attack.

As he went up, Goten came down and they met with enough force to have the camera crews shielding their eyes as debris flew like missiles through the area. "Can you follow any of this, Gohan?" Goku asked, not taking his eyes off of the pair as they fought, somehow keeping inside the ring.

"Only some of it," Gohan admitted, shrugging one shoulder. "They're too fast for me." Like his father, he kept his eyes on the battle currently taking place, knowing his chance would eventually come. "They're a lot like you and Vegeta," he went on, wincing in sympathy as Trunks received a particularly vicious blow to the stomach. "They're pretty evenly matched, but I think Goten's playing with him again. He's holding back."

"I agree," Goku replied, feeling the end of the fight coming. It was only a matter of time before one or the other landed outside the ring, lost consciousness or died. Inside the ring, Goten was rapidly growing bored with the fight, and was keeping his attention on finding an opening he could exploit. Moments later, he found it, and though he hated repeating himself, he sent an energy blast straight through Trunks, the force of the blast carrying him to the ground once more, just inside the ring.

Bulma, a silent spectator to that point, was inside the ring before anyone could stop her. They knew they couldn't enter the ring to rescue her, because they'd be viewed as further combatants. She drew her fallen son's sword from its sheath, where it had been since the battle had begun, forgotten in his anger, and charged, letting loose a cry of rage and pain unlike anything they'd ever heard from her before. "Don't hurt her, Goten!" Gohan cried, knowing he would be ignored, but he had to try anyway. Pan and Videl looked away, silent tears running down their faces for what was about to happen. Goten flicked a glance at Gohan and ducked under Bulma's clumsy attempt to swing the heavy weapon, before taking the sword from Bulma's inexperienced hands and sending her flying with an absent backhanded slap. She might have landed on top of Trunks if, with the same motion, Goten hadn't killed her with another energy blast, driving both of their bodies out of the ring.

"No exceptions," he reminded them unnecessarily, already motioning for his next opponent. "Next!" Still in shock, the others made no move to enter the ring. Heaving a sigh, he shook his head. "All right, then," he said, "I'll pick. Eenie, meenie, minie--" Vegeta's powerlevel shot through the roof and an unholy smile lit Goten's face.

"Mo," Vegeta growled, slowly getting to his feet. "You're going to pay for that, _kid._"

"Bring it on, _Shorty,_" he retorted, setting himself for anything Vegeta could throw at him. "We haven't got all day!" He was knocked flying by an uppercut before being driven almost to the ground by a two-fisted blow to the back of his head. Ten feet from the ground, he was on his way back into the air, a well-aimed energy ball taking him up. For almost five minutes, he let Vegeta use him as a punching bag, bouncing like a pinball around the ring, never landing outside of it.

"Fight back, damn you!" Vegeta shouted down at him after sending him to the tile where he landed with a bone-jarring thud.

"Why?" Goten replied, making no attempt to get up. "I'm having fun." He lifted an eyebrow at the irate Sayan Prince. "Besides, I thought you were going to make me pay for killing Trunks and Bulma."

"You will," Vegeta vowed, coming down fast to continue the fight. Goten shot out from under him at the last moment, leaving Vegeta on the ground in a hole the force of his attack had created, but he was back in the air with a savage growl, following Goten who was waiting for him. Again, Goten moved before Vegeta could hit him, reappearing behind him. Catching him in a chokehold, he held on despite Vegeta's attempts to break free.

"How is this making me pay, Vegeta?" Goten wondered, his voice pitched for Vegeta alone. "Trunks put up a better fight than this. Then again," he went on with an evil chuckle, "it was still so easy to ill him. Bulma was . . . just a bonus." It didn't seem possible, but Vegeta's powerlevel hit new heights than it ever had before, even while he was training, and Goten let go of him, laughting. "That's more like it, Vegeta! Let's see what you've got!"

"You will fall at my hands, _boy_," Vegeta growled, transforming into an ascended Sayan. From his power level, Goten knew he could go foarther and decided to push him, wanting to see how far he'd go to get the revenge he desired.

"You're all tal, Vegeta," he taunted, ducking or blocking every punch, kic and energy blast Vegeta sent his way. "You couldn't beat me even if I was tied to a tree." He kept up the digs, scoring hit after hit on Vegeta's pride. The angrier Vegeta got, the harder and more often he attacked, and Goten was perversely pleased enough with his reaction to keep up with the jabs to his pride.

"That's enough out of you," Vegeta shouted, losing what was left of his already limited patience.

"What do you plan on doing about it, Vegeta?" Goten wanted to know, lifting an eyebrow as he caught a punch before it hit him in the face. "We've been at this for a while now, but so far, you haven't managed to hurt me."

"I said, that's enough!" Pushed past his limit, Vegeta did something he'd never done before: he transformed into a Super Sayan Three.

"Interesting," Goten said to himself, watching the transformation take place for a moment before copying him. "This should be fun."

"I'd say this evens things up a little, wouldn't you?"

"We'll see about that, Vegeta! Hit me . . . if you can."

**AN:** Sorry about the repeptiveness in the battle, folks. It wasn't easy to write this and I tried to keep as true to DBZ as possible. Anyway, read and review, and remember to cast your votes soon! Final show down is coming up, and every vote counts!


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